The Meta Quest 3 VR headset is reportedly "far lighter and thinner" than the Quest 2

The Meta Quest 2 VR headset is getting a bit long in the tooth. When it launched nearly three years ago in October 2020, it even had a different name, the Oculus Quest 2. It's one of the worst-kept secrets in tech that Meta is working on the Quest 3 device, and now a new report claims to have gotten some hands-on time with a prototype.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that he got access to an early version of the Meta Quest 3. He says that physically, the prototype "feels far lighter and thinner" than the Quest 2. The design of the headset has also changed, according to Gurman:

Instead of a bland-looking gray face, it has three vertical pill-shaped sensor areas across the front. The left and right pills each include one color video pass-through camera (the part that lets you see the world around you) as well as a standard camera. That means it has two color cameras versus only non-color cameras on the Quest 2. The middle pill includes a depth sensor, a first for a Quest.

The video pass-through hardware on the Quest 3 prototype also got a big improvement for the device's AR mode. Gurman reports that it "presented colors more accurately and offered an almost lifelike rendering of the real world." The overall performance for the headset's interface and apps is also better, most likely due to a new custom chip that was developed by Qualcomm and first announced in 2022.

The current Meta Quest 2's starting price is $399, and today's report says Meta might sell the Quest 3 for a higher cost. However, if it's not too much higher, Gurman believes that it "could make some noise this holiday season." We will have to see, however, as VR headsets, even at low prices, have not gained much traction with normal consumers.

Meta will reportedly launch the Quest 3 in October. It's possible we may get a teaser of the headset later this coming week at the company's annual Meta Quest Gaming Showcase. The streaming event, which will show a number of new and unannounced Quest VR games, will begin at 10 am Pacific time (1 pm Eastern time) on June 1.