Sometimes life is too busy to keep up with it all. This week’s Meta Quest news was full of announcements, releases, rumors, leaks, and a variety of other information you don’t want to miss, even if you technically already missed it. But don’t worry, we’ve compiled all the important information you need to know between July 22-26, 2024.
Meta Quest introduces Meta AI ✨ scheduled for release in August this year in experimental mode. – Watch on YouTube
This week, actor and influencer Anthony Hamilton Jr. got the chance to get an early look at Meta’s AI upgrades for Quest, showing off a set of new features that owners of the Ray-Ban Meta smartglasses have been using for months now.
According to UploadVR, the new feature is officially called “Meta AI with Vision,” and Quest 3 users can expect to see the feature appear in the Experimental section of the settings menu in August, which should coincide with the v68 firmware update, also due in August.
The new update significantly enhances the Quest’s existing voice commands, now using the headset’s camera to see the world around you and answer questions (as long as you give permission first, of course). Hamilton Jr used it the same way many people do with their Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses, but we’ll likely see new ways to use it with VR headsets in the future.
This is the first time an app can use the front-facing camera to identify the world around you. Until now, all Quest apps were only allowed to access the playspace of the system-created environment. While this helps protect privacy, it puts significant limitations on mixed reality apps.
Developers have been asking Meta to improve this feature and allow access to the camera to help them create better mixed reality apps. Meta hasn’t said that this feature will be open to third parties in the future, but this is a major milestone towards a possible future.
(Image courtesy of VR Panda on X)
The Meta Quest 3s has been rumored and leaked for several months now, but this week we got our first first-hand look at this potential new budget Quest headset from VR Panda on X. VR Panda is a Meta Quest 3 accessory manufacturer that’s known for leaking previous announcements, including for the Quest 3 and other companies’ headsets like the Pico.
This track record gives us confidence that this leak is genuine, and it also lines up with previous promotional material leaks for the headset, which is expected to be unveiled at Meta Connect on September 25th.
On the front, the Quest 3s has six cameras split into two clusters, much like the iPhone Pro models (any year will do.) The new headset is expected to debut with the same powerful Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset and color mixed reality vision as the more expensive Quest 3, with a price tag of $299.
Avatar graphics could be significantly upgraded
(Image courtesy of @Luna on X)
Over the years, Meta’s avatar system has undergone significant overhauls and updates as the company has experimented with different art styles and ideas. When Meta made a big push into the Metaverse in 2021, the company made the first move to get rid of its previous, hideously ugly avatars, before putting legs on them two years later.
Currently, it appears that several Meta employees are testing out a never-before-seen avatar design, shown in the image above and first seen by user Luna on X. The new avatars also appear to do away with the more cartoony body size ratios that the current system employs (dubbed “Boss Baby heads” by some users) and use more realistic graphics.
Meta has yet to officially announce the avatar overhaul, but if this is the new design it could be unveiled as early as Meta Connect on September 25th.
Virtual objects look better in the real world
(Image courtesy of Meta)
This week, Meta updated its developer tools to support better mixed reality quality with a focus on how virtual objects look in the real world. The new update specifically addressed how virtual objects look when a physical object blocks their view.
In UploadVR’s example, a real computer chair is placed in front of a virtual guitar, and the Quest mostly succeeds in making the virtual object appear to be in real-world space. The new update improves object cropping around physical objects, making it appear as if those virtual objects are interacting with real-world objects.
Additionally, the new Meta update reduces GPU usage by 80% and CPU processing by 50%, enabling developers to create more meaningful mixed reality experiences and games, which could result in an even more authentic look and feel for upcoming Meta Quest games, such as Spatial Ops.
Shared Experience Upgrades
(Image credit: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)
One of the coolest things about VR is the ability to spend time with someone virtually and feel like you’re in the same room, even if you’re thousands of miles apart. X user Luna has discovered new code in an early release version of August’s v68 Quest update that suggests Meta is expanding on this concept further, creating a feature similar to Apple’s SharePlay on Vision Pro.
For those unfamiliar, SharePlay is a feature that allows iOS and Vision Pro users to make a FaceTime call, then launch an app, movie, etc. and sync up the playback so they can watch “together.” This has been especially useful during COVID isolation on phones, but you’ll need a VR headset to get the most out of it.
At the moment there’s little information on what this will look like or how it will work, but it will likely involve using Meta Quest’s group functionality to make calls and launch selected apps or videos. The group feature is already used to make multiplayer gaming easier, so it would make sense for Meta to expand on this to add features that make the social experience more seamless.
VR at the Emmys
(Image courtesy of Singer Studio)
Released in April of this year, “The Pirate Queen” helped to highlight the importance of learning history through virtual experiences. Developed by Singer Studios and narrated by Lucy Liu (yes, the famous Lucy Liu), the game puts players in the role of Chen Xi, one of the most notorious pirates of all time.
As reported by Mixed News, the adventure was nominated for an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Emerging Media Programming,” along with three other nominees, including “Wallace & Gromit: The Great Getaway,” for outstanding quest series.
“As VR becomes more prevalent in society, we’re seeing more awards programs include VR content in addition to VR games. Experiencing something in first person through the eyes of another person creates a special empathy, so it’s great to see The Pirate Queen in particular nominated.”
