Today, during its Connect 2023 event, Meta unveiled information regarding the release window of the Meta Quest 3, a long-awaited MR headset. Meta will debut the device on October 10, with pre-orders open now. Meta has also confirmed the device’s price point, with the Quest 3 128GB model costing $499.9 and the 512GB model costing $649.99.
Moreover, during the event, Meta is also revealing details regarding other elements of its immersive product portfolio, such as Ray-Ban Stories, Spark, and Horizon Worlds, via keynotes and speaker sessions.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, gave core details on the Meta Quest 3 during the event’s opening keynote.
Speaking in person from Meta’s Menlo Park HQ, the CEO revealed:
We are incredibly proud to introduce Quest 3, the first mainstream mixed-reality headset. Quest 3 is the most powerful headset we have ever shipped, and it allows you to blend the physical and digital words together.
Meta CTO Andrew “Boz” Bosworth also said:
No wires, no battery packs, no console to plug into. We’ve also made big improvements to the display and the optics stack. It’s a new display system and a new generation of the same pancake lens we debuted on Quest Pro last year. The result is an almost 30 percent increase in resolution. Those pancake lenses are also one the reasons we’ve been able to slim down the Quest 3. It’s a lot more comfortable to wear thanks to its thin profile and more even weight distribution.
The Quest 3 is a standalone MR headset that enables users to leverage hand-tracking inputs to interact with immersive applications – the device also comes with controllers for traditional input methods. However, the Quest 3 device does not support eye-tracking.
Additionally, other Quest 3 technical specifications include:
- 4K resolution “Infinite Display” (2064×2208 pixels per eye)
- Snapdragon XR2 Gen2 chipset
- Pancake lens
- Spatial audio
- Two RGB cameras with 18 PPD
- 8 GB of DRAM
- 515-gram weight
- 90 Hz, 120 Hz (experimental) refresh rate
- 110 degrees horizontal and 96 degrees vertical
- 58 mm-71 mm IPD lens adjustment
- TruTouch variable haptics
- Meta Quest Link cable and Air Link support
- 2.2 battery life based on “hours of usage on average”
- Wi-Fi 6E support
The firm notes that the device’s full-colour pass-through leverages stereoscopic depth perception that improves immersion during an MR experience. Meta also claims that the Quest 3’s improved spatial audio system is 40 percent louder than the Quest 2.
Will Apple and Meta go Head to Head?
The device is aimed at a consumer market. Notably, the firm is partnering with Xbox to bring the gaming platform’s cloud-based content library to Quest 3, allowing users to play games on large-scale virtual screens.
However, Meta is marketing the Quest – alongside the Quest 2 and Pro – as part of its “Meta for Bussiness” platform, indicating that the device will come with workplace considerations and applications.
In closing and perhaps taking aim at Apple’s Vision Pro and its high price point, Zuckerberg stated:
But to build the future, it’s not just enough to make this possible. We have to make it so that it is affordable and accessible to everyone. That’s why we focus our innovation not only just on groundbreaking innovations but on making sure that these things are accessible to everyone because, to us, that is just as important as advancing the state of the art.
However, Andrew “Boz” Bosworth said in July that “whenever a great competitor comes out, whether it be the Pico, whether it be Apple Vision Pro,” a competitor such as Meta must ask, “what did they do differently, and why? What did we miss? Did we get it wrong, or did they figure something out? So you try to learn from it.”
The firm appears to be learning from marketplace competitors and previous Quest products. Notably, the Meta Quest Pro took an enterprise-first approach but faced poor adoption rates, and Meta will likely look to overcome similar hurdles when distributing the Quest 3.
With the Quest 3, the firm looks to secure a foothold in the entertainment industry, where most of its success lies, therefore avoiding markets that could prove a risk.
Boz said:
At the same time, you can’t constantly be chasing every competitor because then you’re getting thrown off your own game. – In our case, I think we’ve got a great ecosystem, we’ve got a great set of devices, we’ve got a great price point. So it’s a balance to try to learn from them and not over-rotate on that.
The Apple Vision Pro is deeply focused on claiming the workplace user-base. Meanwhile, Meta is focused on consumer and entertainment markets. Although, overlaps exist between the two target auidences.
Meta is releasing its Quest 3 on the market first, but while this gives the firm the lead?
