Zuckerberg thinks Meta Quest headsets will remain the most popular choice among VR enthusiasts
The XR industry is still talking about how Meta has just made its Quest OS open to third parties. And apparently Mark Zuckerberg — CEO at Meta — thinks that the company’s Quest lineup of headsets will remain the most popular VR headsets.
Meta Horizon OS, which is the new name of Quest OS, will allow third party manufacturers to jump into the XR industry with fewer hurdles. Asus is already working on a performance-oriented gaming headset and Lenovo is developing a productivity-focused headset as well.
Zuckerberg thinks that Meta’s strategy of selling its Quest headsets at minimal profit will help Meta retain its market share. Whereas third party manufacturers will most likely be selling higher-priced headsets that cater to specific demographics.
Meta Horizon OS, which is the new name of Quest OS, will allow third party manufacturers to jump into the XR industry with fewer hurdles. Asus is already working on a performance-oriented gaming headset and Lenovo is developing a productivity-focused headset as well.
[...] Mark Zuckerberg told investors these headsets will be targeted around specific use cases, and that he thinks Meta's first-party Quests will remain the most popular headsets "as we see today”
— David Heaney, UploadVR, April 2024
This claim is, in my opinion, made more believable by the fact that Q1 2024’s Quest revenue showed a promising increase over last year. The publicization of Meta Horizon OS should also net Meta a neat profit while accelerating growth in the XR industry via the introduction of more headsets.
Zuckerberg mentioned four different kinds of headsets he could imagine entering the market running on Meta Horizon OS. These were:
Zuckerberg mentioned four different kinds of headsets he could imagine entering the market running on Meta Horizon OS. These were:
- A lightweight headset for the “best work experience”
- An “extra-light” headset focused on fitness and featuring “sweat-wicking materials”
- A gaming headset feature-packed with “support for all kinds of different peripherals and haptics”
- And a headset for media consumption and entertainment with high resolution OLED displays
The Meta Quest 3 is an excellent piece of kit.
Zuckerberg’s belief in Quest headsets remaining the most popular goes counter to what John Carmack had to say. Carmack — former CTO at Oculus — thinks Meta Horizon OS going public will stagnate innovation at Meta. He figures Meta will focus more on hardware development from now on, something he thinks isn’t going to advance VR.
I, for one, can’t wait for new VR headsets to hit the market. Because, man, does this industry need some new blood to get it rolling again.
I, for one, can’t wait for new VR headsets to hit the market. Because, man, does this industry need some new blood to get it rolling again.
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