The Meta Quest 3S Is Out In The WILD!

Meta’s next headset is called the Meta Quest 3S, and it was already out in the wild when we made this video in June 2024, so a release seemed close. If you’re thinking of upgrading from a Quest 2, now’s a good time to start saving. But is it going to be worth it? Here’s everything the leaks and rumors said at the time: the likely specs, release date and price, and how it compares with the Quest 2 and Quest 3. Keep in mind that all of this was based on rumors, so take it with a grain of salt.

PrismXR sponsored one segment of this video, for its Carina D1 charging dock. That pays for our time, not for the verdict.

How the Meta Quest 3S leaked

Over the past year, a lot of evidence pointed to Meta working on a cheaper alternative to the Quest 3, meant to replace the Quest 2:

• A leaked hardware roadmap from last year mentioned a budget-friendly headset.
• The official Quest Store accidentally listed “Meta Quest 3S” and quickly removed it. That confirmed the name, which first showed up in a leak of the design three months earlier.
• Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth accidentally revealed the headset when it was spotted on his desk in a video.

We expected more details at Meta Connect in September. Since the Quest 3 was announced before Connect the year before, we thought we might hear something even sooner.

Meta’s goal has always been getting VR into as many hands as possible, and the Quest 3S looks like another step in that direction. That might disappoint anyone waiting for a Quest 4.

The PrismXR Carina D1 charging dock

The sponsored segment: the Carina D1 is a charging dock for the Quest 3 with a flexible magnetic pin, so you just set the headset down without lining it up precisely and it starts charging. The included power adapter charges the Quest 3 in under two hours and the controllers in two and a half. I love its compact, nest-inspired design, which keeps the setup tidy and frees up your USB-C port. It has a holder for aftermarket straps (which almost everyone uses), and you can turn off the LEDs while charging, which is great next to your bed. It solved some of my gripes with other docks, so it’s becoming my go-to.

Design and display

Leaked images suggested a bulkier design than the Quest 3, with downward-facing cameras at the front in a dual triangular layout. The extra thickness is probably because it uses the Fresnel lenses from the Quest 2 instead of the Quest 3’s pancake lenses. Fresnel lenses have glare issues and aren’t as sharp, but they keep the cost down.

The same leak suggested the Quest 2’s resolution, 1832 x 1920 pixels per eye, which could mean the same single LCD panel. The downside is less flexibility to adjust the lenses to the distance between your eyes (your IPD), so the image could be less clear for people outside its IPD range.

Tracking and mixed reality

The Quest 3S was expected to bring a few upgrades over the Quest 2:

• Infrared illuminators were a big speculation, for better room setup and tracking even in low light. That would be a step up from the Quest 2 and even the Quest 3.
• Color mixed reality. Probably slower and less accurate than on more expensive headsets, but a big improvement over the Quest 2’s black-and-white passthrough. Mixed reality became one of my favorite features this year, and I can’t imagine using VR without it anymore.
• Inside-out upper body tracking could come too. Meta launched it on the Quest 3 and said it would be supported on all future headsets, and the cameras are placed the same way. That would be fantastic for social presence in VR.

Performance and controllers

The Quest 3S was expected to use the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2, the same chip as the Quest 3. That means the same games and apps with similar graphics, which is what makes it interesting.

There were rumors Meta might ship it without controllers to save money. I doubted it: many Quest games and apps are built for controllers, and hand tracking alone would be very limiting without eye tracking. Mark Zuckerberg has also stressed how important controllers are, especially since the Apple Vision Pro launched without them. I expected controllers similar to the Quest 3’s, without the self-tracking cameras of the Quest Pro controllers, and I hoped for an option to upgrade to those.

I always get asked about compatibility. The Quest 3S was expected to work with all existing Quest games and apps, like every previous Quest, because it’s the same ecosystem. That has always been a great thing about Quest.

Rumored price and release date

• Price: rumored between $200 and $300, about half the price of the Quest 3, which was around $500 at the time. I think that would be a very reasonable price.
• Release: based on previous launches, possibly October 2024, with official details on features, price and availability expected at Meta Connect in September. Past trends also suggested an official announcement within two months of this video.

Quest 3S vs Quest 2 vs Quest 3

Put together, it was looking pretty great for the price. I’m not a fan of Fresnel lenses, but the Quest 3S seemed set to deliver Quest 3 performance and mixed reality at an affordable price, which makes a Quest 3-like experience available to more people. For Quest 3 owners it’s not exciting, unless you want a second headset.

Who the Meta Quest 3S is for

If you have a Quest 2 and you’re on a budget, or you want a second headset to play with friends and family, the Quest 3S looked like a great option.

Why make a Quest 3S instead of a Quest 4? I think it comes down to Mark Zuckerberg’s goal to grow the VR market as fast as possible. A cheaper headset with many of the Quest 3’s features brings in more users first and grows the VR ecosystem, which would eventually be a win for all of us. Meta is still subsidizing its hardware, though, and there are privacy concerns, so keep that in mind.