Meta Quest 3S hands-on: Going all-in on affordable VR

Meta Quest 3s is designed to deliver next-generation graphics at a reduced price tag.

It's an impressive $ 200 less than the $500 Quest 3, putting it in real reach of people this Holiday season .

Both models include Batman Arkham Shadow for free when you buy a headset before April 2025 .

You can preorder a Quest 3S right now, and the headset officially launches on October 15, 2024 .

Meta Quest 3S has a 20% larger battery than the Quest 2 and Meta states this helps it last up to an hour longer on a single charge than Quest 2.

The fit felt identical to Quest 2 , although I haven't used that headset with a cloth strap in years .

The biggest difference is the lenses, which aren't as clear as the Quest 3's pancake lenses and have a very small sweet spot.

Meta recently minted the new name back in April when it announced it would be offering the OS to other manufacturers to make their own VR headsets.

The Quest 3S plays the same games as the more expensive Quest 3 , has the same quality color mixed reality vision, and even uses the same controllers with advanced haptic feedback.

The worst part remains the lenses with their small sweet spot and hazy peripheral view.