Oculus Quest Teardown

Published in

badvr

6 min readMay 22, 2019

Been waiting years for a device like this to exist. So of course the moment it arrived, I tore it apart. Didn’t even turn it on first. Here’s what happened…

Looking for a way in

The first step was figuring out where to start. The only visible screws were little Torx T4 on the side straps. Unfortunately, those only opened up the side straps and didn’t lead inside the case.

The tools used for this expedition were a combination of scalpels and machetes

Torx T4 for the side strap screws, revealed nothing of interest underneath

Picking up the prying pick, I tried to see if any edges would pop off. Everything was extremely solid, very well built, so I started to tug at the fabric covering a bit. Aha, could just see the edge of screws underneath. There was no discernible way to remove the sheath, so I just snipped it in the center part with the wire cutters. Point of no return, crossed.

Peeling back the skin revealed a path to the inside

Opening the case

Now I could finally start removing something, and so I unscrewed whatever was visible. Torx T5 fit perfectly, and everything from this point forward was T5, except for those first two screws on the side straps, for some reason.

Under the bottom panel, I found a small circuit board handling the volume buttons underneath. Also, a linear slide potentiometer aligned with the lens housing. This probably measures IPD from the user’s mechanical adjustment.

Back on the top, since I had already cut into and ruined the skin, I just slashed it open. The battery was underneath this top panel. One top screw was in the center, plus one perpendicular screw on each side that doubled as case screws for the front cover.

Battery

Once removing the top panel, there’s one screw and the battery container can be lifted up. Please be careful: the battery cannot be fully removed until the connector is detached from the mainboard.

Fujian YU10850–18001A with capacity 3.85V / 3648 mAh (14.0 Wh)

The battery is underneath a metal cover held closed with strong tape

Lenses & Lens Housing

Two small rings around the rims of the lenses just popped off. Then the mesh area has three clips on each side around the edges, and two screws accessible from the top. The headstrap can be replaced without removing this piece.

This pops out with clips, AFTER removing two screws

The plastic rings pop off the lenses, then the meshy thing underneath has 3 clips around each lens housing

Accessing the mainboard

Upon removing the front cover, the mainboard is exposed. Presumably the CPU underneath matches the advertised specification of a Snapdragon 835. Most likely the cooling solution and configuration of the processor allow for much better performance than the equivalent smartphone with the same chip.

Detaching the lens assemblies

The lenses are primarily held in place by two rods that act as a sliding track for the IPD adjustment. After removing these rods, the lenses are capable of removal, though they are still held in place by the ribbon cables attached to the LCD’s. These ribbon cable connectors can be easily popped off the mainboard after the antenna covers above them are removed.

Opening up the LCD

There is a bracket behind two bolts and six friction clips around the edge. Then, the plastic can be slowly pried off to reveal a backing made of rubber or a foam type material. Underneath, the LCD is held onto the plastic housing with an adhesive. Be careful when cutting through, as the LCD is extremely fragile. In fact, this one cracked in the corner while prying it open :(

Inspecting the camera modules

There are 4 identical camera components, one on each corner. Upon closer inspection, three of the four modules say NF 902 1 on the front, and the final says NF 903 1. On the rear, the ribbon cable says AW00D03 Sunny. All camera modules appear to be interchangeable and the discrepancy in 902/903 may be due to a manufacturing batch number.

Conclusion

Overall, this is a fantastically designed piece of equipment. I’ve disassembled a number of different VR headsets including the Lenovo Mirage Solo, and the Quest is definitely on another level. Reusable components, easy to take apart (minus the shroud), and relatively durable. Someday, this device could be further miniaturized with better lenses and higher density LCD’s. Until then, enjoy this amazing headset!