Meta Quest 3 has been available for a while and the growing library of apps continues to make the most of its hardware. The headset is based on the popular Meta Quest 2 and adds full-color video and mixed reality features. It’s also the best VR headset available (with Apple Vision Pro coming in second).
While the Quest 3 costs $200 more than Quest 2, comes with a good number of updates. The new headset features a 40% thinner visor and a new Snapdragon chipset to power your virtual reality and mixed reality experiences. While Meta plans to keep the Quest 2 around for a while, it’s clear that the Quest 3 is undoubtedly the flagship of his line.
Plus, if that price is out of your range, the leaked Meta Quest 3 Lite will offer most of this feature set at a lower cost.
Meta Quest 3 Price
Meta Quest 3 is officially available for purchase!
Right now, if you buy the 128GB model, you’ll get Asgard’s Wrath 2 for free. If you upgrade and purchase the 512GB model, you’ll also get a six-month Meta Quest Plus subscription in addition to the free game. This pre-order offer ends January 27, 2024.
You can pre-order the Quest 3 from Metastore in 23 countries or at select retailers. In the US, you can pre-order at Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. UK customers can pre-order from Amazon, Curry’s and Argos.
A place where currently I can’t Buy Meta Quest 3 is China, but it looks like that’s going to change. According The Wall Street Journal, Meta returns to China and brings with it the Quest 3. However, the expectation is that this version of the Quest 3 will be cheaper; some analysts are tentatively calling it “Quest 3 Lite.”
- Read more: Meta Quest 3 review: Best VR headset with mixed reality potential
Meta Quest 3 Specifications
Meta Quest 3 comes in two storage sizes: 128 GB and 512 GB. This is a bit disappointing since 256GB seems like the perfect storage size, but at least there’s an option for those who need a lot of space.
But most importantly, the Quest 3 will receive a new chipset. The headset is powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon instead of the Quest 2 it is 6GB. Unfortunately, this falls short of the 12GB of RAM you get with the Meta Quest Pro.
The Meta Quest 3 also has an improved display. Meta calls the new displays 4K+ Infinite Displays, which are two LCD displays that use pancake optics to achieve a resolution of 2064 x 2208 pixels per eye. Meta says this improves the Quest 3’s resolution by almost 30% compared to the Meta Quest 2. Other resolution specs include 25 pixels per degree (PPD) in VR and 1218 pixels per inch (PPI).
When using the headset’s full-color video pass-through, the resolution drops a bit. In mixed reality, the resolution is 18 PPD fed by two RGB cameras instead of 25 PPD. This is still an upgrade, however, as Meta says it’s “over 10x more pixels in Passthrough compared to Quest 2 and 3x more pixels compared to Quest Pro.”
In terms of refresh rate, the Quest 3 features a native 90Hz refresh rate with an experimental 120Hz refresh rate. Hopefully, the Quest 3 will eventually hit 144Hz thanks to eventual post-launch updates, but for now , its limit is 120 Hz.
One aspect of the Quest 3 that doesn’t get an upgrade is its battery life. The Quest 3 features the same battery life numbers as the Quest 2, which Meta says is usually around 2.2 hours, but can last 2.9 hours when only consuming media. The headphones will fully charge from 0% in two hours with the included 18W charger, which is also on par with the Quest 2.
Meta Quest 3 Design
The Meta Quest 3 has been completely redesigned from the “inside out” according to Meta. While the headset has the same general aesthetic as the Quest 2, its optical profile is now 40% slimmer, thanks in part to the pancake lenses. It also has a bold trio of two pill-shaped RGB cameras and a depth projector on the front of the headset to facilitate full-color video streaming.
There is also a new lens distance adjustment wheel that allows for more precise adjustment of the interpupillary distance (IPD). The headset supports an IPD from 53mm to 75mm. The built-in glasses and depth adjustment eliminate the need for the glasses spacer insert I needed with the Quest 2.
The speakers also get a boost on the Quest 3. Meta says that the Quest 3’s audio range is 40% higher than the Quest 2 and that the Quest 3 produces 3D spatial audio with improved clarity and bass. There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack if you want to plug in your own headphones for more immersive audio.
In terms of the strap, the Quest 3 includes a soft strap with an optional hard Elite strap available for purchase for $69. It is similar to the Quest 2, although the strap design is slightly modified for a more secure fit. However, Meta has officially stopped sales of the Elite Strap with Battery. This is because the external battery included with this version of the Quest 3 band does not recharge. It’s unclear why this issue occurred, but Meta says units are being manufactured without the critical defect and will reach retailers.
One downside to all these design changes? The impressive components will be difficult to replace. In a teardown of the new Quest 3, iFixit found that the Quest 3’s repairability is poor, giving it a repairability score of 4 out of 10. This is largely due to the difficulty in getting to the headset components, but also to the lack of spare parts available to consumers if something breaks.
As for the controllers, Meta has redesigned the Quest 3’s Touch Plus controllers to be more ergonomic; It’s not easy to tell from the quick video, but we’ve noticed a major improvement in our headset wear time.
The Touch Plus controllers also feature TruTouch haptic technology, giving the Quest 3 controllers a feature we love on the PSVR 2. This should give users a more realistic and immersive experience.
Unfortunately, the Touch Plus controllers frustratingly rely on disposable AA batteries. However, the headphones do have a Meta Quest charging dock available for an additional $129. Wireless charging of the headphones is facilitated by contact pads on the bottom of the headphones and includes rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for the drivers.
Meta Quest 3 Features
The main feature of the Quest 3 is, of course, the mixed reality capabilities facilitated by the headset’s full-color video passthrough. This allows you to switch between immersive virtual reality content and transfer-enabled augmented reality experiences with holographic overlays with a simple double tap on the side of the headset to swap. Check out our guide to the Meta Quest 3’s new mixed reality features, including five you can try out as soon as you get the headset.
Quest 3 will also have access to the entire Quest 2 content library, including the best Meta Quest 2 games. Additionally, more than 100 new Quest 3 apps and improved Quest 2 apps are coming to Meta Quest 3 through the end of the year, meaning you won’t be short of experiences and games to try. Be sure to check out our roundup of the Meta Quest 3 games we know are coming so far.
The Quest 3 also gains the PC VR compatibility of the Quest 2 with Windows PCs thanks to Quest Link and Air Link. That means access to almost all of the best virtual reality games. And, like Quest 2, you’ll have access to Meta Quest Plus. Quest Plus is Meta’s virtual reality gaming subscription service that offers two select games per month to subscribers for just $7.99 per month.
One feature that should be a major improvement? Thanks to the Quest 3’s six advanced camera sensors, the Quest Boundaries feature can now automatically scan your play space to determine the boundaries of your play space. Quest 3 can automatically scan your room in 3D, understanding where walls, floors, furniture, and other surfaces are located, which is a big boost to ensuring mixed reality experiences work properly.
Unfortunately, while the Quest 3 has Direct Touch hand tracking, it won’t feature eye tracking. That means there’s no foveated rendering on the Quest 3, a feature you do get on more expensive headsets with beefier hardware.
- Read more: Meta Quest 3 Mixed Reality Features: 5 Things You Can Do Right Now
Meta Quest 3 vs. Meta Quest 2
Just because Meta has a new flagship headset doesn’t mean it’s forgetting about the popular Meta Quest 2. In fact, the Quest 3 announcement made it seem like the Quest 2 will now serve as an entry point to the metaverse for the near future. , with Quest 3 providing the best Meta Quest experience. Check out our full Meta Quest 3 vs. Meta Quest 2 showdown to see the biggest differences between the two headsets.
If you don’t want to pay for the Quest 3, don’t feel like it’s necessary. Thanks to Meta’s price reduction and its commitment to developing a line of Quest products, there has never been a better time to buy the Quest 2. Check out our three reasons why you should buy the Meta Quest 2 right now.
- Read more: I just tried Meta Quest 3 – here are 3 reasons to buy it and 1 great reason to skip it
Meta Quest 3 vs Apple Vision Pro
Meta is not the only company that has new headphones. Apple has announced the Apple Vision Pro, the company’s first headset. And while both headsets show off their mixed reality features, they’re really different. And it’s not just about price and specs, both headsets approach the problem of experiencing mixed reality in noticeably different ways. Check out our Apple Vision Pro vs. Meta Quest 3 showdown for the full breakdown.
Meta Quest 3 Perspectives
Overall, it looks like Meta added a lot of significant updates to the Quest 3. A slimmer design, improved displays, a more powerful processor, and improved drivers are just some of the improvements Meta has made. And it lets you experience mixed reality without needing to spend $999 on the Meta Quest Pro, which is a welcome development.
But at $200 more than the Quest 2, the Quest 3 will have to prove that its performance is noticeably superior and that mixed reality is worth the extra money. The former is largely proven, but mixed reality is not there yet. We still think Quest is enough of an improvement overall to make it worth overtaking Quest 2, but don’t expect a mixed reality marvel just yet. Hopefully that will improve as more developers release Quest 3 apps.
