What is Meta Quest?
It might sound like an unusual question in a world where the adoption of virtual reality and extended reality solutions is exploding.
As of 2023, around 171 million people are using VR headsets worldwide. Most people have already heard of both “Meta”, the world-leading technology company, and the “Quest” line of VR headsets.
However, there are still plenty of people confused about what “Quest” actually is. After all, while Meta might be a giant in the extended reality landscape today, it’s still a relatively “new” brand.
If you’re confused about the Quest product line, this complete guide should answer all the questions you have.
What is Meta Quest? The Basics
Meta Quest is an extended reality product line created by Meta Platforms, formerly known as Facebook Inc. In 2021, Facebook was best known as a social media giant responsible for solutions like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
After some business issues, including a handful of scandals, the CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, announced a complete rebrand for the “Facebook” company. The new name “Meta” was chosen to represent a new focus on immersive reality and the “metaverse.”
While many of Facebook’s properties retained their original branding, the “Oculus” brand, previously acquired by Facebook in 2014, adopted the new name.
The transition to the new branding paved the way for Facebook to dive deeper into the world of immersive technologies.
The first “Meta Quest” headset launched in 2019, followed by the far more powerful Meta Quest 2 in 2020.
Is Meta Quest the Same as Oculus Quest?
Oculus was initially founded in 2012 by a group of independent developers and hardware enthusiasts. It was funded by a Kickstarter campaign and rapidly grew to raise $921 million across several funding rounds.
In 2014, Facebook acquired Oculus for a massive $2 billion. Originally, Oculus was known for headsets like the Oculus Rift, followed by the Oculus Go and Oculus Quest.
When the Facebook brand evolved into Meta, the Oculus “Quest” headsets became the “Meta Quest” headsets. In 2020, the tech company even introduced a new “Reality Labs” unit. Reality Labs became responsible for all of the brand’s VR and AR hardware and software initiatives, from the new Quest devices to Horizon Worlds.
Now, the term “Meta Quest” refers to a whole family of immersive headsets built to deliver interactive “3D” experiences to various users.
The Product Collection
Like many XR innovators, Meta has made several updates to its product portfolio in recent years. When the first Quest was introduced, global VR usage was yet to gain momentum. Oculus was among the few leaders in a yet-to-mature market.
After unveiling its rebrand, Meta committed to becoming a leader in the extended reality and “metaverse” space. Let’s take a closer look at the various products that have appeared in the collection over the years.
What is the Meta Quest? The First Quest Headset
The first Meta Quest headset, introduced in 2019, was a rebranded version of the Oculus with the same name. At the time, it was one of the most exciting consumer-ready VR headsets available. It featured the same functionality the Oculus VR company designed for their Quest collection.
The initial headset addressed some of the issues Oculus had previously had with the “Oculus Go,” one of the first standalone VR headsets that didn’t require a tethered console or PC. Though the device was a pioneer, it had limited positional tracking and controller functionality.
This led the Meta team to develop their version of the Quest, which launched in 2019 with six degrees of freedom, positional tracking, and intuitive hand controls. Unfortunately, this version of the Quest is no longer available from Meta.
What is Meta Quest 2?
In 2020, Meta released their new version of Quest, which introduced a massive upgrade to the previous VR headset. Though the Quest 2 shared the standalone design of the original Quest, it featured a range of new components, such as the Snapdragon XR2 platform for processing power.
The Meta Quest 2 can handle more advanced apps and games and features a much higher resolution per eye than the previous model. It also includes an option or a higher refresh rate, creating smoother, more realistic virtual experiences.
The Quest 2 even came with passthroughough options for safety, advanced hand tracking, and robust built-in sensors.
What is Meta Quest 3?
Currently, the latest version of the Meta Quest headset (at the time of writing), this new headset was unveiled by Reality Labs in June 2023, and released in October 2023. Though it looks similar to the Quest 2, the Meta Quest 3 also features a host of upgrades.
It comes with sleek, ergonomic controllers without the tracking rings used on previous devices. It also comes with a 2064 x 2208 pixels per eye display, compared to the predecessor’s 1382 x 1920 pixel lenses. Meta updated their single-element Fresnel lenses to pancake lenses, upgraded their refresh rate, and updated the Snapdragon XR2 processor to its “Gen 2” version.
Plus, unlike the Meta Quest 2, which only allows black and white, the latest version supports full-color passthrough for mixed reality. The tech company is planning on upgrading the Quest 3 with additional features, such as full body tracking.
What is Meta Quest Pro?
The Meta Quest Pro is the version of Meta’s Quest headset specifically designed for business users. Like the Quest 3, it features full-color passthroughough, pancake optics, and advanced inward-facing cameras for eye, face, and hand tracking.
The Quest Pro outperforms the Quest 2 headset with a 75% greater color contrast experience, TruTouch haptics for virtual interactions, and new sensors, like an ambient light sensor. However, it’s not quite as advanced as the Quest 3 in terms of display resolution.
However, Meta has said both the Quest 2 and Quest Pro will receive a massive performance boost to help align them with the Quest 3.
The Wider Ecosystem
The Meta Quest ecosystem doesn’t just consist of various hardware options. It also involves all the apps and experiences created by the Reality Labs team. The Meta Quest Apps lab is now home to more than 1,000 different applications for gaming, collaboration, and more.
The ecosystem also includes the “Quest Developer Center,” with access to hubs, dashboards, and companion tools that streamline the creation of the XR experience. Meta even has its own “Presence Platform” for developers interested in mixed reality.
Plus, developers can access tools like WebXR to create immersive content for web, mobile, and VR devices and PWA for 2D VR applications.
What’s Next? The Future of VR
Ever since Facebook transformed into “Meta,” the Meta Quest ecosystem has evolved at an incredible rate. Although the tech giant has experienced issues with its XR vision, laying off employees at Reality Labs and reducing its focus on the metaverse, the Quest lineup continues to evolve.
Rumors suggest Meta plans to release its first set of smart glasses in 2025, alongside a smartwatch with a neural interface.
For now, insights into the future roadmap of the Quest ecosystem remain limited. Although Meta has told consumers that it plans on upgrading its existing devices with new software and patches in the years ahead, it’s difficult to know what will come next.
The future could include everything from new headsets like the “Quest 4” and “Quest 5” to new AR glasses and innovative software solutions. Meta is already working on creating more advanced avatars for metaverse experiences and apps that will allow people to collaborate and communicate more effectively in extended reality.
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