Meta had its Q4 2022 earning call this week and the past year didn’t do particularly well, as was expected. But the company is still pressing ahead with its metaverse vision and the hardware that’ll help consumers access it. As part of those plans, CEO Mark Zuckerberg mentioned the Meta Quest 3 and its mixed reality (MR) capabilities.
During the call, he discussed the recently released Meta Quest Pro. Using the Meta Reality system, he made mention of Quest 3’s potential. “Later this year, we’re going to launch our next generation consumer headset, which will feature Meta Reality as well,” Zuckerberg revealed.
The company said last year that its next-gen consumer headset would be arriving towards the end of 2023. The Quest 2 has been available since 2020. However, there has been little information as to what tech might feature. MR trickling down from the Quest Pro was expected and now seems definitively confirmed.
Meta’s Mixed Reality
Meta Reality is the company term for its mixed reality technology. Providing full stereoscopic colour passthrough that seamlessly blends a digital world with your real one. It works by way of two front-facing grayscale cameras for the stereoscopic view, with a single, central camera adding colour and texture to a scene.
With Zuckerberg using that term, it means Quest 3 mixed reality gaming will be a new avenue for developers to explore. “I expect that this is going to establish this technology as the baseline for all headsets going forward, and eventually of course for AR glasses as well,” Zuckerberg adds.
Expected to retail within Quest 2’s current price bracket, the Quest 3 has been subject to several leaks and rumours. The biggest is it’ll feature the next generation of Qualcomm’s XR2 chipset. The XR2 Gen 1 is in the Quest 2. With both companies now collaborating on Snapdragon XR chipsets, significant performance improvements need to be made to offer Quest 3 mixed reality functionality, as well as VR improvements.
What do you think? Or will you be buying a Quest 2 next week with the free game bundle? Let us know.