In a strategic move before Apple's WWDC conference, Mark Zuckerberg officially announced Meta's Quest 3 VR headset on his Instagram. Following the release of Quest 2 in fall 2020, priced at $299 initially, the successor, Quest 3, is set to hit the market this autumn, with expectations running high.
The timing of the Quest 3 announcement is significant, as Meta plans to unveil a new AAA adventure game today, and Zuckerberg pre-empted the conference by revealing information about the Quest 3. Moreover, with Apple's highly anticipated Apple Glasses expected to be announced next week at WWDC, Meta seems to be making a pre-emptive strike in the race.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who had the opportunity to test an unreleased prototype of the device, provided detailed insights earlier this week. He mentioned that the Quest 3 features a lighter and more comfortable design, along with additional sensors and redesigned controllers.
The video clearly showcases three new sensor areas on the front of the device, highlighting the differences between Quest 3 and Quest 2. Although there are three pill-shaped black areas, it's worth noting that there are actually more than three lenses. According to Gurman's description, these pill-shaped areas house four cameras (two on each side): two full-color cameras and two standard cameras.
The central pill-shaped area contains a single depth sensor, which is expected to enhance the AR capabilities of the VR headset.
Gurman stated that the new hardware significantly improves the AR mode of the device. He reported that it offers more accurate colors and nearly lifelike rendering of the real world, likely due to the adoption of a custom chip announced by Qualcomm in 2022. Additionally, a new Touch Plus controller was showcased, featuring TruTouch haptic feedback and a redesigned form without the circular design of the previous controller.
While the information provided did not include details about the configuration of the sensors, it is expected that the depth sensor will work in conjunction with the controllers, and Meta confirmed that gesture tracking will be supported from the beginning.
Alongside the Quest 3 announcement, Meta also revealed a price reduction for the Quest 2. During their Q3 2022 earnings call, Meta announced the forthcoming release of the Quest 3 and mentioned that the company's cost of revenue would increase, partly due to the launch of the next-generation Quest glasses in 2023, resulting in increased hardware costs for their Reality Labs division.
Quest 3 will also be compatible with games from Quest 2, and an additional piece of good news is that the price of Quest 2 has been lowered. Starting from June 4, Meta announced a $100 price reduction for the Quest 2, with the 128GB version priced at $299.99 and the 256GB version reduced from $429.99 to $349.99.
Last July, Meta raised the price of the entry-level Quest 2 from $299 to $399 due to rising manufacturing and shipping costs. Quest 2 primarily targets individual consumers, and in October last year, Meta introduced the Quest Pro VR glasses for enterprise users.
Originally priced at $1,499.99, Meta reduced the Quest Pro's price to $999.99 in March this year, while also lowering the price of the high-end Quest 2 from $499.99 to $429.99.
Additionally, Meta announced that both Quest 2 and Meta Quest Pro will receive a software update that will enhance their CPU and GPU performance and enable dynamic resolution scaling.