Meta Quest 3 gets September launch date and new trailer — what you need to know

Meta already teased us with a reveal trailer for the Meta Quest 3 when it announced the new VR headset back in June. But now, we know when to officially expect the next-generation mixed reality headset.

Meta has announced that it will officially hold its Meta Connect 2023 conference on September 27-28 and the headliner will be a keynote with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on September 27. According to a tweet on Meta’s Twitter profile, that’s when we should expect a big Quest 3 announcement. 

The tweet came with a new sizzle reel, though, unfortunately, it didn’t give us any new details on the upcoming headset. 

Meta Quest 3: Known features and specs 

Luckily, we already know a fair amount of what to expect with the Quest 3: For example, we know what the headset will cost, which is $499 in the U.S. At the moment, U.K. and Australian pricing are still unknown, though we expect it will be £499 in the U.K. and somewhere between AU$629 and $700 for Australia. 

Aside from the price, we know a few other things of note regarding Meta’s follow-up to the Meta Quest 2.

First, this will be a mixed-reality headset, rather than a true virtual reality headset. This is thanks to the sensor and camera array we see prominently displayed in the trailer Meta dropped alongside the Meta Connect announcement. This trio of pill-shaped cameras/sensors sits on the front of the headset visor and will allow for full-color passthrough, reportedly better than what is currently possible on the Meta Quest Pro.

And that’s not all it’s taking from the Quest Pro. The Quest 3 will also be using pancake lenses, a feature that allowed the Quest Pro to slim down its visor noticeably compared to the Quest 2. The Quest 3 will also have a slimmer profile, with Meta claiming the headset is now 40% slimmer than the Quest 2.

Aside from this, expect some more details on teased upgrades to come at Meta Connect. The ones I’m most interested in are the new Qualcomm Snapdragon chip, which Meta says will make the Quest 3 “Our most powerful headset yet.” They also claim that the Quest 3 display resolution will be Meta’s “highest resolution display” with a “nearly 30% leap in resolution from Quest 2.” 

I look forward to seeing if all these upgrades can combine to make the Quest 3 the best VR headset we’ve ever tested come September. 

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