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Spatial computing, or as the common people call it, mixed reality or augmented reality, is here to stay in some form or another. While most of us can’t afford the exorbitant Apple Vision Pro, Meta’s Quest 3 headset may be within reach. However, should you really invest in such a device? The answer may depend on several factors. Let’s explore.
What is mixed reality?
Mixed reality or augmented reality blends the digital and physical worlds in a way that’s more interactive and practical than traditional virtual reality. Unlike virtual reality, which creates a completely digital environment, mixed reality allows you to see and interact with your actual surroundings, but enhanced with digital objects. It has practical applications across various fields.
For example, in education, it can bring historical events to life right in the classroom. In industries like architecture or design, professionals can use it to visualise projects in real environments before they’re built and not to mention gaming as well. The Meta Quest 3 like the Vision Pro has video pass through that lets you see your surroundings through the cameras on the device. Allowing the device to overlay digital things on real surroundings.
Is the Meta 3 available in India?
Officially it isn’t, but some enterprising businesses have put up plenty of devices on Flipkart and Amazon for sale. However, despite not being officially available in the country it does still work in India without issues. Plenty of Indian YouTubers have bought, unboxed and showcased the device already. It is more expensive at Rs 65,000 than the official $500 price tag, but you have to pay the middle man tax for now if you want to play.
What about the Quest 2?
The Quest 2 is significantly cheaper and a lot of the programs do run on it, but the Quest 3 is a significant jump not only in compute power but also in resolution allowing things to be a lot more immersive and natural. Meta has improved the controllers as well. However if you are not willing to pay the current price of a Quest 3 you can buy a Quest 2 at approximately Rs 32,000. It is a nice introduction to the device. There are also rumours of new cheaper iteration of the Quest 3 that is due to be released this year, might be better off waiting for that.
What can I do with it?
There is a lot you can do with it for now mostly because it has access to the entire library of apps from Meta Quest 2 these include games, utility apps, Netflix, Prime Video and a bunch of other things. Unlike Apple’s Vision Pro you can also connect the Meta Quest 3 to a PC to play PC VR games. You can do this via a USB cable or wirelessly and it isn’t restricted to Apple devices. The programs are still largely based for the Quest 2 but because of the massive hardware upgrade there are new and interesting programs coming out for the Quest 3. A good example is Piano vision which lets you learn piano with a real piano with overlaid graphics showing you what keys you need to press. There is Softspace, which is a productivity app designed to get some work done. There are also a ton of workout apps—and let me tell you, these can really make you sweat.
That being said, there is no proper utility yet other than gaming and entertainment. It may take some more time before you can actually use this as a virtual office or immersive video conferencing tool.
Should you buy one?
For now, gamers may get the most utility out of it. There are a lot of games that are releasing in VR, and with Steamlink, you can actually connect your Steam Account and stream VR games using your PC. Considering there are no huge backpacks or heavy equipment or even a wire attached it makes gaming very comfortable. Not to mention again the new controllers are the best VR controllers I have used. So, if you are a gamer who likes VR games, the Meta Quest 3 is a sound investment considering its specs and price. (Please don’t buy a Vision Pro even if you can afford it!)
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