C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
TL;DR
- A dependable leaker suggests Meta might launch the Meta Quest 3S in September.
- Allegedly, this is able to be a less expensive model of the Quest 3, launched final 12 months.
- Meta would possibly ship it with out controllers as a cost-cutting measure, though that’s much less possible.
Though Apple had excessive hopes for its ultra-premium Imaginative and prescient Professional XR headset, the shoppers have spoken: they need headsets for gaming, primarily, and wish them to be beneath $1,000 — so the Imaginative and prescient Professional has been an abject failure. To its credit score, Meta bought the message on this just lately by allegedly canceling its personal ultra-premium headset that may have competed with the Imaginative and prescient Professional. Now, the long-rumored cheaper mannequin of its most up-to-date XR machine could possibly be across the nook.
The Meta Quest 3S, as its alleged title suggests, could be a pared-down model of the profitable Meta Quest 3, which launched in June final 12 months. This leaked info comes from Mark Gurman’s latest Energy On e-newsletter. We had beforehand heard a few “Lite” mannequin coming, however it seems like Quest 3S could possibly be its new title.
Gurman suggests this cheaper mannequin might land within the $300 to $400 vary, making it considerably cheaper than the Quest 3, which begins at $499 for the 128GB mannequin. Gurman says it’s potential Meta might meet that cheaper price tier by promoting the controllers individually. Nonetheless, this is able to be a cumbersome transfer from a shopper perspective, as most individuals will need the controllers. If the controllers are offered individually for $100, for instance, the mixed worth would get you near the usual Quest 3, making the entire thought of the Quest 3S irrelevant. So we predict there shall be controllers within the field with the Quest 3S, however they is probably not the identical controllers that include the Quest 3.
We count on Meta to announce the Quest 3S at its Join occasion, which is going on at its Menlo Park headquarters on September 25 and 26. Gurman additionally suggests we might see some new Google Glass-like AR glasses, codenamed “Orion.” These could be totally different from the surprisingly profitable Ray-Ban Meta sensible glasses, however related in idea.