Inside Meta Quest 3

October 16, 2023 VRNerd

Officially announced back in early June 2023, Meta Quest 3 promised to be not only a worthy successor to the mega-selling Meta Quest 2 but also a powerful counterpart to the recently released Meat Quest Pro and a potential challenger to Apple’s first foray into VR/MR hardware, Apple Vision Pro. With both Quest Pro and Apple Vision Pro priced well above $1,000 USD, Meta has made sure to offer forward-thinking VR users a more affordable option.

The Nuts and Bolts of Quest 3

Meta Quest 3 inner workings — A peek at the inner workings of Meta Quest 3. [Image: iFixit]

With units now available for purchase at $499.99 USD, Meta Quest 3 is a tempting purchase for anyone seeking advanced VR and MR capabilities. Boasting a Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chip and, when compared to Quest 2, twice the GPU power, a CPU performance increase of 33%, 40% louder audio range, and roughly 15° wider FOV (104° horizontal / 96° vertical). Graphically, Quest 3 is a significant step up from Quest 2, its 4K Infinite Display resolution (2064×2208 per eye) delivering powerful VR and, thanks to full color passthrough, XR experiences.

Comfort is Key

Physical product design improvements allow for comfortable use by a wider range of users, accommodating glasses as well as different head shapes and hairstyles. Although Quest 3 weighs in slightly heavier than Quest 2, its slim profile helps distribute the weight more evenly for additional comfort.

Red Matter 2 played in the Meta Quest 3 — Comfort is crucial when you plan on spending hours immersed in your favorite VR game. [Image: Red Matter 2]

Meta Quest 3 ships with Touch Plus Controllers, self-tracked input 6DoF devices with a compact design that ditches Quest 2’s tracking rings and adds improved haptic feedback. Meta claims its updated tracking algorithms will more than make up for the absent tracking rings, which are replaced by IR LEDs contained in the controller faceplate itself.

Looking Ahead

Meta Quest 3 full color passthrough example — For many users, Quest 3’s full color passthrough will be one of its most appealing features. [Image: Meta]

With Meta Quest 3 already earning strong reviews and seeing fairly good sales amidst an increasingly competitive market, Meta is laying the foundation for its continued commitment not just to VR but to XR/MR, a technology which will arguably be even more revolutionary than VR once it truly takes hold.