Mint Virtual Reality

Here's our live recap of every announcement made during the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase 2023.

via Mint VR

The Skytech Blaze 3.0 gaming desktop, which can run the best PC games with its Nvidia RTX 3060 graphics card, is currently on sale from Monoprice for just $860.

via Mint VR

Quest 2's price is being cut back to $300 and a future software update will increase GPU and CPU performance.

Quest 2 Price Cut

When revealing the $500 Quest 3 today Meta also revealed that from Sunday the 128GB Quest 2 will be cut from $400 back to $300, and the 256GB Quest 2 will be cut from $430 to $350.

Quest 2 launched almost three years ago at $300 and $400 respectively, but saw a storage bump to the base model in 2021 and then the price was raised to $400 and $500 last year. Just three months ago the 256GB model was cut to $430.

Assuming the prices stay the same by the time Quest 3 launches, Meta's headset lineup should be:

Headset	Price
Quest 2 (128GB)	$300
Quest 2 (256GB)	$350
Quest 3 (128GB)	$500
Quest 3 (TBAGB)	$TBA
Quest Pro (256GB)	$1000

Meta's timing on the Quest 2 price cut is likely related to Apple's keynote on Monday, where the iPhone maker will reportedly unveil the ultra premium AR/VR headset it has been working on for many years now. The headset is believed to be branded Reality Pro.

Quest 2 & Pro Performance Boost

The Quest OS dynamically adjusts the CPU and GPU clock frequencies to give apps the performance they need without wasting battery when they don’t need it.

In December, Meta increased Quest 2’s maximum GPU frequency by 7% in a software update, and the company says it will increase it by a further 19% in the next update, alongside a 26% increase in maximum CPU frequency.

Quest 2's max GPU frequency should then be around 625 Mhz - higher than Pico 4's max, which was 587 Mhz as of November.

Quest Pro will also get maximum clockspeed increases, 11% for the GPU and 26% for the CPU.

"As developers take advantage of these changes, you can expect smoother gameplay, a more responsive UI, and richer content on both headsets", Meta said.

Of course, all existing headsets performance should be dwarfed by the upcoming Quest 3, which will be the first to feature the "next-gen Snapdragon chipset" Meta claims delivers "more than twice" the performance as Quest 2's GPU.

Dynamic Resolution Scaling

Meta says Quest 2 and Quest pro will also get Dynamic Resolution Scaling (DRS) "so games and apps can take advantage of increased pixel density without dropping frames".

DRS is used in many recent console and PC games. The system increases render resolution when there's spare performance and decreases it when the GPU is under too much load, so you always get the best available resolution without sacrificing performance.

via Mint VR

Meta just officially revealed Quest 3 is shipping this fall, starting at $500 for the 128GB model.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed the headset's design and revealed its key features on this morning. Quest 3 features a slimmer design, which Zuckerberg says is 40% thinner. It also features "better displays and resolution" and a "next gen Qualcomm chipset with 2x graphics performance."

Improved Mixed Reality

Quest 3 also features "high-res color mixed reality" passthrough, thanks to dual 4MP RGB color cameras. Meta says there's "10x more pixels in Passthrough compared to Quest 2." The headset also includes a depth sensor for "a more accurate representation of your play space."

Meta says its "best-in-class Meta Reality technology lets you seamlessly blend your physical world with the virtual one" and "go beyond today’s mixed reality by intelligently understanding and responding to objects in your physical space."

Meta confirmed Quest 3 will be along alongside Quest 2 and Quest Pro.

Meta says it will offer an additional higher storage option for Quest 3, but did not share pricing or storage details for that model.

Thinner Design With Pancake Lenses

Oculus Go, Quest, Rift S, and Quest 2 all used the same fresnel lenses, but last year Meta introduced its new pancake lenses in Quest Pro. Pancake lenses support smaller panels at a closer distance, and thus a slimmer visor.

Quest 3 uses pancake lenses as well, enabling its much thinner design compared to Quest 2. Pancake lenses also offer superior visual clarity. For Quest Pro, Meta claimed 25% better sharpness in the center and 50% better at the edges.

Quest Pro also has a slightly wider field of view than Quest 2, so this may be the case for Quest 3 as well given the same lenses. However, this would depend on other currently unknown factors such as panel utilization.

Touch Plus Controllers

The new Touch Plus controllers, pictured below, ditch the tracking rings from Quest 2. Meta says this is "thanks to advances in tracking technology" and makes the controllers "feel like a more natural extension of your hands and take up less space."

They also feature the TruTouch haptics – the 3-point HD haptic first used in the Touch Pro controllers bundled with Quest Pro.

Competition With Apple

While Meta revealed Quest 3 today, it says it will have "lots more to share" about the headset at Meta Connect on September 27.

Mark Zuckerberg may have decided to reveal Quest 3 today, rather than hold off until closer to launch, because of Apple's impending announcement.

Bloomberg, The Information, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and others all claim Apple will finally reveal the ultra premium AR/VR headset it has been working on for many years now, reportedly branded Reality Pro.

Apple's device will reportedly have much higher specs, but Meta may be hoping Quest 3 delivers far greater value at a fraction of the price. Reality Pro will reportedly be priced around $3000, while Quest 3 is expected to cost around $500.

UploadVR's Ian Hamilton accepted Apple's invitation to attend the keynote in person on Monday. For a summary of all the rumored specs & details so far, see our roundup here:

Apple Headset Specs, Release Date, & Everything We’ve Heard

Reports indicate Apple is preparing to reveal a standalone headset with VR and AR capabilities. Here’s our updated roundup of everything we’ve heard:

UploadVRHarry Baker

via Mint VR

The Expanse: A Telltale Series pushes the narrative adventure genre forward by pulling in elements from Dead Space.

via Mint VR

The third annual Meta Quest Gaming Showcase starts today at 10am PT. Here's how you can watch it.

The showcase will be live on the Meta Quest YouTube channel from 9:30am PT today, June 1. The pre-show begins at 9:45am PT and the main showcase starts bang on 10am PT.  

We've embedded the YouTube stream above, however you'll also be able to watch on Twitch, Facebook or in Horizon Worlds, if you prefer.

Meta says this year's showcase will be its "biggest celebration" of the Quest platform yet, promises over 40 minutes of content including "new game announcements, gameplay first-looks, updates to existing games, and more." As with last year, this showcase will be hosted by Oculus Studios Executive Producer Ruth Bram.

There will also be a "post-show developer roundtable" this year, featuring a "deep-dive conversation around some upcoming games."

via Mint VR

If you're looking for games featuring a diverse range of queer representation this Pride Month, here are 7 great titles to start with.

via Mint VR