The Meta Quest 3 was released last week, and it’s fantastic. It’s a great step up over the Quest 2 in every way, and it makes VR that much more engaging.
Perhaps of greater consequence, the “pass-through mode” on it (where you can see the world around you) is far better than the Quest 2 and it makes AR (augmented reality) games a solid experience on there. You can see your real world around you, but interact with it with things like aliens coming through the walls of the room that you’re in. Here’s a video that shows it off:
Of course, the other big headset getting discussed lately is Apple’s upcoming “Vision Pro“. It looks amazing, and the camera/AR system on the Vision Pro is considerably better than the one on the Quest 3. However, the Vision Pro will be $3500 when it comes out next year (compared to the $500 for the Quest 3), making it an easy decision for people today.
The next round
The next round of these devices, likely coming in 2 or 3 years, is the one that will be super interesting to watch for two reasons.
First, the Quest 4 will presumably have even better pass-through, getting closer to the quality of the Vision Pro.
Second, Apple will likely release a consumer-focused “Vision” (removing the “Pro”) at a reduced price.
It seems likely that those two devices will be far more similar than they are this generation, and that’s when the competition will really heat up. Just like the iPhone vs Android battle has benefitted all of us through the feature battles over the years, we’ll likely see a similar battle with headsets.
For now, I’m going to enjoy using my Quest 3 and really start to get a feel for how AR and VR could impact things in the future, and I’m already looking forward to the next set of devices in the coming years.
