Quest 3: Meta replaces broken Elite Straps with battery free of charge
Defective Elite Straps with battery for the Quest 3 led to a temporary discontinuation of the expensive accessory at the end of last year. Meta is now informing customers about a possible replacement.
Meta is currently sending out emails to customers who own an Elite strap with a battery for the Quest 3, confirming that "in a few cases" the strap's extra battery was not being recognized by Quest 3 headsets, resulting in errors when charging the headset's battery.
This error appears to have been fixed in current batches. Meta is offering users a free replacement, even if the strap is not affected by the known defect. Your eligibility for a replacement will be determined by a verification process that will be provided via a link in the email.
Alternatively, you can contact customer service yourself and use the serial number to verify your eligibility. If this is confirmed, you can keep your old strap and — if it is indeed defective — dispose of it yourself. It can take up to eight weeks until you receive the replacement.
- Please note: So far, we only have insight into emails received in Germany. We do not currently know if they are sent worldwide. If you live in other countries and have received such emails, please let us know in the comments.
Defective Elite Straps caused a pause in sales
At the end of last year, Meta temporarily stopped selling the Elite Strap with battery for the Quest 3. The reason was a charging error that prevented the extra battery from charging the headset. Many users reported this problem on social media. Meta told MIXED that a simple software update for the Quest 3 was not enough to fix the problem. Instead, the manufacturer had to equip the Elite Strap with a new firmware.
This update has to be installed at the factory during production and is therefore not available for devices that have already been shipped. This is the second time that Meta has made a technical gaffe with an accessory. The official Elite Strap for the Meta Quest 2 was also initially released with defects.
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