Quest headsets are often understood as a loss leader. Analysts believe Meta is losing money per unit sold. The strategy has been a huge market share win, as the social media giant is able to undercut competition like the HTC Vive. So far there has been little victory for the company’s bottom line. At its Meta Connect 2024 keynote Wednesday, the company unveiled a cheaper version of its mixed reality headset.
With a starting price of $300, the Meta Quest 3S is a full $200 less expensive than the Quest 3. Clearly Meta’s strategy of flooding the market with devices is still in full effect with this one.
“The Quest 3S is the best headset for those new to the immersive experience and those who may have been waiting for a low-cost upgrade from the Quest and Quest 2,” noted Meta in a blog post.
While the Quest 2 and Quest Pro are officially dead with this news, the Quest 3 continues its price drop. The 512GB model drops from $650 to $500. Meta will also include a new Batman: Arkham Shadows title and a three-month subscription to Quest+ with every purchase of a Quest 3 or 3S.
Meta, naturally, has made some cuts to bring the new model’s starting price down to $300. That puts the minimum storage at 128GB, though if that’s not enough, you can get a 256GB model for $100 more. The 3S also has a scale-down display. In fact, it matches the 1832×1920 resolution display found in Quest 2; this is without a doubt, the single largest scale reduction, from Quest 3’s 2064×2208.
The field of view is also the same as the Quest 2, at 96H/90V, compared to the 3’s 110H/96V. 3S is gram lighter that 3 and 9 grams are heavier than 2. The model also has better battery life, despite sporting a smaller battery than the 3.
If you look at the specification list, Meta could easily name the new headset Quest 2.5. That said, the 3S sports 8GB of RAM like the Quest 3, and the same Snapdragon XR Gen 2 chip.
The Meta Quest S3 will be available for pre-order on Wednesday. It starts shipping on October 15.
Source link
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25728924/STK133_BLUESKY__B.jpg?w=390&resize=390,220&ssl=1 "Bluesky now has a chat tab in your notification area")