Meta Debuts the Quest 3S, Its Cheapest Mixed-Reality Headset

Meta announced several products at its Meta Connect 2024 event in California, but Quest 3S stood out for many reasons. It’s the company’s cheapest mixed-reality headset, featuring a similar chipset (Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2) and software functionalities as the older and pricier Meta Quest 3.

Meta Quest 3S features a refreshed Meta Horizon OS that better supports 2D applications. Meta says the new OS will also deliver improved spatial audio and better Passthrough contrast and color.

The new Quest 3S is compatible with all applications and games in the Meta Store. Also, the headset comes bundled with exclusive games (like Batman: Arkham Shadow) and Quest 3-specific performance updates.

Despite sharing a similar form factor, the Quest 3S and Quest 3 have varying display quality, optical lenses, and camera setups. The new Quest 3S has its sensors and Fresnel lenses arranged in triangular clusters, while the Quest 3’s Pancake lenses and sensors have a pill-shaped setup.

Additionally, Quest 3 has a better display (2,064 x 2,208 pixels per eye) and will provide more realistic graphics and sharper videos than the Quest 3S (1832 x 1920 pixels per eye).

The Quest 3 remains Meta’s most powerful mixed-reality headset. However, the new Quest 3S doesn’t seem like a watered-down version, especially spec-wise. 

Quest 3S starts at $299.99 for the base (128GB) version and $399.99 for 256GB, while the 512GB version will retail for $499.99. Interested buyers can pre-order the Quest 3S from Meta’s website before it hits the shelves on October 15.

In other news, the retail price for the 512GB Meta Quest 3 is dropping from $649.99 to $499.99. Meta is also discontinuing the Quest 2 and Quest Pro. The company says it’ll sell whatever’s left of both models through the end of 2024 or until they’re out of stock. According to Meta, the new Quest 3S will provide outstanding value “both for those new to VR and those looking to upgrade from Quest or Quest 2.