At Meta Connect 2024, the company announced the Quest 3S, a $300 VR headset with many of the best features of the more expensive Quest 3 that launched last year. While the Quest 3 is a better headset overall, the budget model can run the same mixed-reality games, apps, and immersive VR titles.
Meta gave the Quest 3S a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chip, the best available in any Meta VR headset. That’s why it can handle big titles like Batman: Arkham Shadow and Asgard’s Wrath 2. If you buy a Quest 3S during the promotional period, Arkham Shadow is free.
It also has Touch Plus controllers without the bulky rings of the Quest 2’s controllers. If you’re upgrading from an older VR headset, you’ll enjoy more freedom of movement without worrying about clashing rings when drawing a virtual bow or putting your guard up in virtual boxing.
The Quest 3S also has the same hand-tracking and controller compatibility as the Quest 3. In Meta’s Horizon OS and a growing number of games and apps, you can simply use your hands to reach out and touch virtual controls as if they were real.
Open the browser to see three giant tablets hovering in your surroundings. Tap on a window to click, browse, and scroll. A Meta Quest 3S could replace your tablet. You get automatic privacy, but sharing the screen with someone else isn’t as easy.
Start the Fast Hands app for some light cardio with hand strikes on the beat. Or grab your controllers for a complete workout to your favorite music with Supernatural. When you’re ready for a break, you can open Netflix in a cinema-sized screen and catch up on your favorite series. The Quest 3S can handle work, play, and entertainment.
Meta AI has been expanding across social media and it’s also in Meta headsets. The Meta Quest 3S has multimodal AI capabilities similar to Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses. With the touch of a button, the Quest 3S launches Meta AI to answer spoken questions or identify and discuss any real-world item visible in the passthrough cameras.
That all sounds great, but at $300 there have to be tradeoffs. The Quest 3S isn’t as slim as the Quest 3 and the lenses won’t have as large of a sweet spot. The Quest 3S has two clusters of tracking cameras on the front giving it a distinctive look, but the body is reminiscent of the Quest 2. It also uses Fresnel lenses like the older model instead of the Quest 3’s advanced pancake lenses.
If you can afford the Quest 3, it’s still a better VR headset, but the Quest 3S is a great first step into VR or an upgrade from an original Quest or Quest 2. You’ll appreciate the lower cost when buying headsets for the whole family.
The Quest 3S starts shipping on October 15 and is available for preorder today.
