Oculus Quest
Whatever it takes
One of the last efforts to save the seemingly dying VR industry, Oculus Quest is going all out to redefine the user experience by removing virtually all hindrances.
The Oculus Quest, all set to release in Spring 2019, is the renaissance that the supposedly dying VR industry needs. It made its public debut on September 2018 at Oculus Connect 5, the annual virtual reality developers conference of Oculus.
Till now, powerful gaming PCs were required for the comprehensive VR headsets to function. Whereas, the standalone mobile powered VR headsets provided limited interactivity and you could not move around (it can be dangerous!) due to its lack of tracking features. Quest by Oculus’s third VR headset is set to be the first VR headset that will offer the best of both worlds with its gaming controllers, location tracking, and 50+ games, all packed into a standalone unit. You might as well bid sayonara to the bundle of cords dangling behind you and expensive gaming PCs.
Oculus Quest is probably the first consumer-ready VR headset. It will bridge the gap between PC based Oculus Rift and mobile-powered Oculus Go. Absolutely standalone, with 6 degrees of freedom (accurate tracking in every direction by the internal sensors) which allows you to walk and move around freely, Quest is also compatible with the existing content of the Oculus library.
Oculus Quest, priced at $399, will contain the VR headset with 2 Oculus Touch hand controllers. It is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip, which might be 2-year-old, but the design of the headset along with an extremely efficient cooling system allows the users to get a flawless experience. The tracking is done by an inside-out tracking technology by Oculus Quest called Insights, using 4 cameras to scan the environment and interpret the orientation and position of the device and controllers. The Hexagon DSP- digital signal processor can precisely track 2 hand controllers with the sensors and built-in cameras without affecting overall the performance.
Similar to the Rift with some improvements, the headset is light and comfortable with the weight more evenly distributed. It also uses similar Touch controllers as Rift. The audio system is built-in inside the lateral bands of the headset, just like Go. Unlike Go’s LCD screens, Quest used OLED displays providing better visuals.
With Nintendo Switch as its only competitor in the market, Quest is probably the savior that the VR industry needs.
