The company formerly known as Facebook may soon be releasing its first new piece of VR hardware since its rebrand to Meta last year. According to developer Steve Moser in a report from Bloombergthe next headset will be called the Quest Pro (sorry nintendo fans† Moser found the name “Quest Pro” in the code of Meta’s Oculus mobile app.
Meta declined to comment on whether the company could confirm or deny the legitimacy of the Quest Pro name.
Meta has long teased a “high-end” VR headset complements the consumer-grade Quest 2, which costs about $299. Codenamed “Project Cambria,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently showcased the device’s mixed-reality capabilities in a demo video†
The Quest 2 has grayscale pass-through cameras that allow users to see their real environment without removing their headset. But the Quest Pro has full-color, more realistic passthrough capabilities, plus depth sensors that help accurately place digital objects in physical space. When used correctly, the Quest Pro can produce some pretty advanced AR experiences, but Meta won’t be without competition. Apple is also reportedly working on a mixed reality headset†
In May a report from The information said Meta’s new headset is expected to cost $799, while Bloomberg’s report today states it will cost more than $1,000. Apple’s rumor head is also expected to be more expensive, which isn’t surprising for a company that sells four digit laptops†
So far, Meta’s dive into virtual reality has not been profitable. In the first quarter of this year, Meta’s Reality Labs lost about $3 billionand last year the division lost over $10 billion† Although Meta launched Ray-Ban smart glasses with a built-in camera last year, the company seems to be diverting its attention from more casual hardware. After slowed sales growth and freeze some hiresthe company is reportedly going scale back his plans to develop AR glasses. Meta is also reportedly stopping production a smart watch with built-in cameras.
Despite these setbacks, Meta pulled back the curtain on VR hardware development last month. The company shared four prototypes from Reality Labs trying to pass the “visual Turing Test” (in other words, Meta wants to make headsets so realistic you might forget you’re in VR).
“There’s still a long way to go, but I’m excited to be able to bring all of this technology to our products in the coming years,” Zuckerberg said in a statement. demo†