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Behold: Oculus Quest, as photographed in my messy house.
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A gray fabric lining around most of the unit is a nice touch.
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Just like the original Oculus Rift, the Quest’s side straps include elastic slack so you can remove them from your face when you’ve adjusted them to your ideal tension.
Sam Machkovech
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USB Type-C port and one of the two 3.5mm headphone jacks on the handset.
Sam Machkovech
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The other headphone jack and the power button.
Sam Machkovech
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At the bottom, you can see the volume buttons and the IPD (Interpupillary Distance) physical slider.
Sam Machkovech
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A closer zoom on one of the four sensors on the headset. Each is angled enough to allow for something apparently wider than a 180-degree tracking zone.
Sam Machkovech
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Bad news: Oculus Quest will no Work without syncing it with your smartphone at least once. (The same goes for Oculus Go from last year.) Good news: once you sync it, you can uninstall the Oculus smartphone app and never use it again.
Sam Machkovech
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The usual lens warnings before diving.
Sam Machkovech
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Oculus Quest (left), HTC Vive Pro (right). Vive Pro gets some extra volume thanks to its “pro” strap and physical headphones, as opposed to Oculus Quest’s use of built-in built-in speakers.
Sam Machkovech
Since its launch last year, Oculus has maintained tight control over the software library on Quest wireless headsets, applying what the company called a “premium approach” to app approval. Today, Oculus pledged to loosen that control with a new app distribution path that will launch early next year.
In a blog post today, Oculus says its console-like healing approach to Quest has been successful, highlighting more than $ 100 million in Quest content sales in its first year. That same tight heal will continue to apply to the Quest flagship store in the future.
But Oculus now says it will also add “a new way for developers to distribute Quest applications” in early 2021. This new channel “will allow developers to share their applications with anyone who has a Search, without having to be accepted into the Oculus store, and without the need for a side load, “writes the company.
Currently, adding unapproved applications to a Quest headset requires configuring the device in a less secure “Developer” mode and using a PC-based tool like SideQuest to transfer the necessary files. Oculus doesn’t share much detail about its new application delivery method, but it seems the process will be more streamlined for end users looking for a wider range of virtual reality software.
While Quest applications on this new channel will still need to comply with Oculus’ general content policies (eg, no pornography, no hate speech, no real money gambling, etc.) Oculus writes that “applications distributed to Through this new channel, it does not meet the same technical standards as the official applications of the Oculus Store. ” That makes it ideal for developers who “want to share their applications as widely as possible [or] test applications in early stages and distribute them to specific users. “
The Oculus move comes as Apple faces its own controversy and possible antitrust probes surrounding too tight a grip on its iOS App Store.
“Bye Bye
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Go, front view.
Sam Machkovech
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Go with your power indicator on. The volume buttons are easily accessible and are pressed in the middle of any action.
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The back of the Go box.
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Raise the top to expose this well-arranged set of pieces.
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The slim black box opens to expose these accessories, including an “eyeglass standoff.”
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What is Oculus Go? Let the instruction manual tell you.
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Instructions on how to replace the controller batteries, how to add the lens separator and other general setup suggestions. Worth noting: I never had to install the eyeglass splitter while wearing my own bulky glasses.
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Zoom into the face of the controller, which includes a useful and usable trackpad.
Sam Machkovech
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A single trigger.
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The unique controller explodes to expose a single AA battery slot.
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How it fits in the author’s hand.
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The strap looks and feels a little weak, but it does the job. (See below what it looks like in my head.)
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The commercial version of Go comes with warning stickers attached to the lens. Great way to make sure users notice them.
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The foam liner is a bit firmer than I’d like, but it’s useful for a discount device. We will be curious to see aftermarket improvements appear in the future.
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Micro-USB to charge.
Along with the expansion of Quest software, Oculus also announced today the end of support for its older Oculus Go hardware. The company now lists Go headsets as “no longer available” on its official website, and developers will no longer be able to submit new Go apps or updates to Oculus after December 4.
The Go stand-alone headset, built as a replacement for the mobile phone-based Gear VR line, was the latest product from Oculus that did not have support for manual tracking drivers or head tracking six-degree-of-freedom movement. Depreciating that hardware makes some sense for a company trying to clean-cut the more limited and less capable hardware of the past.
At the same time, the budget-friendly Go (only $ 149 for a 32GB version) was a great entry-level headset for users who wanted a virtual reality experience that was still one step ahead of something like Google Cardboard. Cost-focused use cases like education, training, and museums are likely to be forced to invest in the $ 400 Oculus Quest, even if they don’t need its expanded feature set.
Sam Machkovech listing image
