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Oculus Quest 3 release date, rumors and what we want

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Here's everything we know and want so far from the Oculus Quest 3

Oculus Quest 3 could build upon the Quest 2
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Now that the Oculus Quest 2 is out and selling well, there’s a good chance that a third-generation Quest is in the works. But Facebook, which owns the Oculus brand, isn’t likely to release the Oculus Quest 3 anytime soon. 

However, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a recent earnings call that the company is “continuing to work on new hardware as well. The new hardware will kind of fit the same platform.”  Zuckerberg added that Facebook wants “content that works on Quest 2 should be forward-compatible,” which would suggest that the social networking giant has plans to make more Quest headsets in the near future.  

Given the Oculus Quest 2 is our pick for the best VR headsets you can buy right now, we’d be keen to see an Oculus Quest 3. Information is thin on the ground here, so a lot of what’s ahead is speculation for the time being. But here’s what we know and want from the Oculus Quest 3 so far.  

Oculus Quest 3 news (Update February 27)

  • During an AMA, Facebook's VP of AR and VR hinted that a more premium Oculus Quest Pro could be on the way. But nothing is confirmed. 

Oculus Quest 3 release date  

Given the Quest 2 came out in the fall of 2020, we’re not expecting the Oculus Quest 3 to arrive in 2021. At the earliest, 2022 could be the target year for its release. But we’d not be surprised if it arrived in 2023. 

The Quest 2 has plenty of life left in it and looks set to get a form of 120Hz refresh rate upgrade. So it should have enough features to stay relevant for a year or two yet. 

Oculus Quest 3 price  

The Quest 2 costs $299 for a 64GB model and $399 for a 256GB model. Both have sold very well; check out our where to buy Oculus Quest 2 article for more. As such, we’d expect the Oculus Quest 3 to be a direct replacement for its predecessor, likely keeping the same price bands. 

Ideally, we’d like to see it come in at a slightly lower price just to open up the world of virtual reality to others. But we suspect the Quest 3 isn’t likely to drop below the $250 mark. 

Oculus Quest 3 is likely to have boosted specs over the Quest 2

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Oculus Quest 3 specs and rumors  

The most obvious spec the Oculus Quest 3 will have is a 120Hz display by default. The current Quest 2 can support a 120Hz refresh rate but it needs apps to upscale content to do so. A speedy refresh rate out of the box would be much appreciated, especially by those who can suffer from motion sickness when using VR headsets. 

Aside from that, we can expect there to be an upgraded chipset, likely from Qualcomm. This could be custom silicon, rather than an off-the-shelf chipset. 

Improved battery life would also be a boon. And a cable bundled into the box, rather than an expensive optional extra, to let you plug the Quest 3 into a gaming PC, would also be on our wishlist. 

Oculus Quest 3: What we’d like to see 

We were very impressed with the Oculus Quest 2, but there’s still room for the Quest 3 to deliver improvements. Here’s what we’d like to see. 

Rechargeable controllers: The Quest 2’s controllers relied on a single AA battery each, which delivered around 30 hours of juice. That’s not bad, but we feel a USB-C rechargeable battery pack would be a boon, as well as more environmentally friendly.  

Boosted hand-tracking controls: Improved hand-tracking would be appreciated in the Quest 3, as we found that in the Quest 2 it could be a little finickity and not hugely intuitive. 

Even higher refresh rate: A 120Hz refresh rate is great, but a 144Hz or higher refresh rate for super-smooth VR games and experiences is on our wish list. 

More Oculus apps: The Oculus Store is not short on VR apps and games, but we’re always keen to see more. Games that really deliver immersive VR experiences, rather than more arcade-like action, could help the Quest 3 stand apart from its predecessor. 

Oculus Quest 3 could bring in improved movement tracking

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Oculus Quest 3 outlook 

The success of the Quest 2 means Facebook can simply refine the Oculus Quest 3 and be on to a winner. Ideally, we’d rather see it push things further on both the hardware and software sides. 

By offering an all-in-one VR system that can deliver truly immersive virtual experiences, we could then see the still reasonably niche world of virtual reality become increasingly mainstream, leading to more apps and games to feed our greedy eyes and hands. 

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • sheriffbullock 19 February 2021 22:06
    Please, no more rechargeable controllers. I have too many cables and devices that need to be plugged in using said cables. I prefer the convenience of removable batteries over built-in battery packs. Besides, rechargeable battery packs are no more environmentally-friendly than rechargeable AAs.
    Reply
  • anscarlett 19 February 2021 22:32
    Higher resolution displays, uhd for each eye and a wider hFoV. 120hz is fine, no need to go over that. Flexible oled would be nice to curve them around your head.
    Faster cpu/gpu.
    Wifi 6e.
    Magnetic pogo cables and a dock for headset and controllers. Please no more plug and socket charging cables!
    Thunderbolt 4 for pcvr
    Eye tracking.
    Auxiliary usb c for additional accessories.
    Wide angle stereoscopic front passthrough cameras.
    Better controllers, grip sensors, more solid wrist straps
    Please offer a dark grey or black option.
    Reply
  • LunaticMS 19 February 2021 23:53
    I think there's exactly ONE feature that will absolutely make the next Quest the undisputed king of VR, and that's built-in (or otherwise easy) wireless streaming of games from a PC. Basically the only objective downside to the Quest over a wired headset is that the quest can't play all VR games onboard, and can only play certain ones via a special cord connected to your PC. The HTC Vive has an adapter to make it wireless, but it requires an expensive accessory that requires you to plug a card into your computer's motherboard, which not everyone can afford/use. A completely standalone headset that can be used anywhere AND can play high-quality games wirelessly from a PC in the room would basically be the best of all worlds, with the only advantage of other headsets being minor incremental improvements like FOV, refresh rate, eye tracking, better audio delivery, and more specialized controllers, none of which have proven essential for the most popular VR games, and basically all of which are currently trumped by the Quest's portability, ease of use, and price point.

    And the best part is that people have already done this on the Quest 2, apparently to amazing success (under the right circumstances). From the sound of it, you currently need to sideload some special software and have good internet, delivered from a good router (that may or may not need line of sight to the headset itself). They have been reluctant to endorse this feature since an improper setup can cause lag and motion sickness, but if they can include some additional hardware (either onboard or perhaps a USB-C accessory) to improve the wireless connection to the point of being stable for even most users, I would ditch my Index and buy a Quest 3 in a heartbeat.
    Reply
  • Keng Yuan 20 February 2021 14:28
    OLED.
    Reply
  • traditional_elk67 26 February 2021 20:20
    LunaticMS said:
    I think there's exactly ONE feature that will absolutely make the next Quest the undisputed king of VR, and that's built-in (or otherwise easy) wireless streaming of games from a PC. Basically the only objective downside to the Quest over a wired headset is that the quest can't play all VR games onboard, and can only play certain ones via a special cord connected to your PC. The HTC Vive has an adapter to make it wireless, but it requires an expensive accessory that requires you to plug a card into your computer's motherboard, which not everyone can afford/use. A completely standalone headset that can be used anywhere AND can play high-quality games wirelessly from a PC in the room would basically be the best of all worlds, with the only advantage of other headsets being minor incremental improvements like FOV, refresh rate, eye tracking, better audio delivery, and more specialized controllers, none of which have proven essential for the most popular VR games, and basically all of which are currently trumped by the Quest's portability, ease of use, and price point.

    And the best part is that people have already done this on the Quest 2, apparently to amazing success (under the right circumstances). From the sound of it, you currently need to sideload some special software and have good internet, delivered from a good router (that may or may not need line of sight to the headset itself). They have been reluctant to endorse this feature since an improper setup can cause lag and motion sickness, but if they can include some additional hardware (either onboard or perhaps a USB-C accessory) to improve the wireless connection to the point of being stable for even most users, I would ditch my Index and buy a Quest 3 in a heartbeat.

    This is already a feature on the Quest 2. All you have to do is buy the Virtual Desktop app from the Oculus Store and then download the streamer app on your PC. It's simple and easy to do. You don't need a cutting edge WIFI 6 "Gaming" Router. It works with minimal latency on 5ghz wifi. I use a $60 router from Archer and it works fine.

    I've been playing SkyrimVR, Blade and Sorcery, and No Man's Sky VR on my Quest 2 every night wirelessly for the past several months. It's a game changer.
    Reply