Meta’s been questing round for a brand new imaginative and prescient for its VR, and it’s lastly arrived. At Meta’s 2023 Join convention, the corporate launched the Meta Quest 3, a mixed-reality VR headset. It begins at $500 and you’ll pre-order it now, with units delivery starting Oct. 10. However earlier than you do, let’s speak about the way it stacks up in opposition to Apple’s massive, costly blended actuality machine coming subsequent yr.

The Meta Quest 3 Has Full-Coloration AR

Meta’s massive plan to compete in opposition to Apple’s $3,500 Imaginative and prescient Professional is to maintain its headsets comparatively low-cost whereas maximizing the augmented actuality capabilities of its exterior sensors. The Quest 3 is a standalone, mixed-reality headset, which Meta says is essentially the most highly effective it’s ever shipped. It “lets you mix bodily and digital worlds collectively,” mentioned Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta. The headset has two digital camera bars on the entrance panel, giving the machine an actual Sam Fisher Splinter Cell vibe. These sensors permit for full-color passthrough so you may see your front room or wherever you might be by means of the glasses with augmented actuality layered on prime.

The brand new headset sports activities a Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 processor, which Meta claims affords “sooner load instances and extra seamless gameplay” in comparison with its predecessor. The following-gen Quest may even see improved visuals with higher decision on its twin lens screens—Meta says the “4K+ Infinite Show with 25PPD and 1218 PPI brings one of the best decision” to its Quest units. The decision is about 2064×2208 pixels per eye.

The Quest 3 controllers have additionally been redesigned. They’re now known as Contact Plus controllers, as they use TruTouch haptics to supply power suggestions akin to the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller. Throughout his presentation, Zuckerberg claimed that “hand monitoring is getting actually good” with the brand new controllers. We’ll be the decide of that.

How Does the Quest 3 Stack Up In opposition to the Imaginative and prescient Professional?

Meta first confirmed off the Quest 3 earlier this yr earlier than Apple had an opportunity to debut its ultra-expensive headset at WWDC 2023. Now that we all know what’s occurring with Apple’s so-called “spatial pc,” Meta’s newest VR/AR machine bears most of the identical hallmarks of digital actuality tech we’ve had for the previous a number of years. The place the Imaginative and prescient Professional solely makes use of gesture controls, the Quest 3 has redesigned stick controllers that also appear primarily used for gaming.

The Imaginative and prescient Professional incorporates most apps that exist already for the iPad and iPhone, however Meta’s new machine will proceed to make use of what’s obtainable within the Quest Retailer and out of its inner improvement groups. That ought to embrace greater than 500 titles, together with each video games and apps. Meta can also be including assist for Xbox Sport Go in December, a boon for avid gamers who use their headsets to “get into the sport.”

Meta is planning for extra AR capabilities sooner or later, as evidenced by a leaked roadmap earlier this yr. The corporate plans to have actual AR-capable glasses by 2027. Although tech years are like canine years, that appears like a good distance off, contemplating the massive, cumbersome headsets wanted for AR.

Time will inform whether or not Meta can meet clients on the $500 mid-range price ticket because it has with the loss-leading $300 ultra-cheap fashions. Finally yr’s Meta Join, the corporate revealed its $1,500 Quest Professional to seize the high-end VR market. That machine had passthrough capabilities, although not in full colour. Meta minimize $500 off the Quest Professional’s asking worth solely 5 months after its reveal.

The corporate has not revealed gross sales information for the Quest, however throughout that leaked roadmap presentation, Meta claims it has offered shut to twenty million Quest headsets. Most of these have been probably the Quest 2, and in response to studies earlier this yr, Meta might minimize manufacturing of the Quest Professional whereas persevering with to promote it alongside the Quest 3. If Meta can provide direct competitors for Apple’s upcoming machine, and for 1/7 of the price of the Imaginative and prescient Professional, it could possibly make a much bigger solace than final yr’s machine.