By most accounts, Meta’s Quest 2 virtual reality headset has been a smash hit for the company. Now it seems, Meta is looking to capitalize on that success with a follow-up VR headset. This new headset improves on the Quest 2 with some useful new features.
Ming-Chi Kuo, normally known for his Apple-centric leaks, provided some details of the new VR headset. It will likely be known as the Quest 2 Pro instead of the Quest 3 and include upgraded specs such as 2160 x 2160 mini-LED displays for each eye and a dual-element lens design.
Meta would release new Oculus Quest with a better design & immersive experience in 2H22. I reiterate predictions from my report last year on upgrade highlights, including:
1. 2.48" mini-LED display with a resolution of 2160×2160 (per eye).
2. 2P Pancake (vs. current 1P Fresnel).— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) April 8, 2022
Other features may include support for facial recognition and even eye tracking. As far as a release date, Kuo believes the Quest 2 Pro will release sometime in the second half of this year. A launch near Christmas would make a lot of sense to take advantage of the holiday season. This may also allow Meta to reduce the price on the existing Quest 2 to bring more people into the ecosystem.
The Meta Quest 2 is the most popular VR headset and it’s not even close. TA recent Steam survey had it around 46% market share. It stands to reason that Meta would try to improve on it as it continues its “metaverse” aspirations.
Meta is also still in the process of developing a mixed-reality headset called Project Cambria. Unlike VR, this headset would allow virtual objects to be overlaid on the real world. Think walking down the street and getting GPS navigation directly on the sidewalk or the air. This is part of the metaverse that CEO Mark Zuckerburg envisioned when he explained the company’s change from Facebook to Meta.
The competition is heating up, however, as other companies continue to get into the VR and AR space. Sony finally unveiled the final design of its PlayStation VR2 headset. It includes eye tracking and 4K HDR displays with haptic feedback built into both the controllers and headset. This is no doubt similar technology as the PS5’s DualSense controllers.
If the Meta Quest 2 Pro is indeed real, we’ll likely hear an announcement from Meta in the coming months. The company canceled its annual F8 conference this year in order to “gear up on new initiatives” aimed at building the metaverse. That means that it will probably be a separate dedicated event or announcement.
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