Virtual reality remains one of the most exciting areas of gaming, and this year one of the best Black Friday VR headset deals can be found on the Meta Quest 3. At Amazon, you can get the 512GB headset with the excellent Batman: Arkham Shadow and three months of Quest+ for just $499 — a $150 saving on its RRP.
Now, if you already have a Quest 2 headset nearby, you may be on the fence over whether it’s worth the upgrade — especially if it’s a little dusty. Well, as someone who made the switch this summer, let me tell you that if you can swing the cost involved, it absolutely is.
When I was persuading myself to part with my cash, my main case for the prosecution was the higher resolution lenses. The Quest 2 is a great headset, but I’d not only found that text was hard to read, but that the 1,920 x 1,832 resolution made extended play taxing on the eyes. The upgrade to 2,064 x 2,208 doesn’t sound much on paper, but given that said resolution is per eye, it certainly adds up. Or added up enough for me to justify putting my credit card down, anyway.
The improved resolution has indeed been a great thing for boosting the length of my VR sessions, but surprisingly it wasn’t the main benefit for me, which is actually comfort. I wasn’t expecting this, given the Quest 3 is a smidge (or 12 grams, to be accurate) heavier than its predecessor, but the use of sharper pancake lenses leads to a more compact design, which in turn makes the weight feel far better distributed. You don’t have to overtighten the straps to compensate, which means an end to those dreaded VR headaches — or at least it has for me.
3 reasons to upgrade...
There are three other bonuses that come with the upgrade, though each is arguably a side benefit rather than a reason to put your money down on their own.
The first is the color passthrough cameras. This was a surprise to me, as wasn’t particularly interested in augmented reality. I’m still not (even though being able to drop a virtual pool table in your living room never grows old), but being able to see the outside world clearly means you can walk freely between rooms without having to choose between removing the headset or trampling stray pets.
Being able to see the outside world clearly means you can walk freely between rooms without having to choose between removing the headset or trampling stray pets.
Secondly, the smaller controllers are nice. Not $499 nice on their own, but they’re more compact and feel better in the hand.
Finally, for PC VR gamers using AirLink or Virtual Desktop to play, the Quest 3 supports WiFi 6e, while the Quest 2 only supports WiFi 6 — so things can improve quite a bit if you have a compatible router with 6GHz support.
All these things add up to an upgrade that I don’t think current Quest 2 owners will regret — especially if they’re eying up Batman: Arkham Shadow, which costs $50 on its own.
What about the Quest 3S?
But what about the Quest 3S, which, at just $299 with Batman, three months of Quest+ and $75 of digital credit for Amazon, is also one of the best Meta Quest Black Friday deals?
I haven’t tried the Quest 3S, but by all accounts, it’s an excellent VR headset. That said, for Quest 2 users, it’s probably a sidegrade overall. Yes, it has the same faster chipset as the Quest 3, but with fresnel lenses rather than the thin pancake ones, it has the same comfort problem as its predecessor, as well as the lower resolution and blurry edges.
In other words, it’s a great entry-level headset, but if you can swing the extra $200, you won’t be disappointed. While my Quest 2 wasn’t getting that much use, the Quest 3 has reinvigorated my interest in virtual reality — the improved comfort really is a game changer.
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