I’m not new to VR headsets using a lot of the Meta Quest 2 and even some of the Meta Quest Pro which I actually own as well, I love being able to immerse in the experience.

I’ve also had the fortunate of playing a lot with the Apple Vision Pro and while it would normally be unfortunate for the Meta Quest 3 as you would believe It was a elevated experience and don’t get me wrong some of it is, to my surprise to didn’t completely blow the Meta Quest 3 out of the water and what I felt emerged from the rubble of what survived the Meta Quest 3 made me view the product in a whole new light in a way I didn’t see before and thus here I am writing that a life for another VR headset after experiencing the Apple Vision Pro does exist!

Meta’s latest VR headset, the Quest 3, greatly improves upon our previous favorite model, the Quest 2. For starters, it features a higher-resolution display and a faster processor, so everything looks and feels better. More significantly, it has color pass-through cameras that make it possible to work and play in high-quality augmented reality using your surroundings.

An important thing I wanted to note is with much of our experience is a great internet connection which you’ll want to make sure of, on Verizon we got great Fios speeds whether being tethered through my phone or on wifi to make connections like Steam link as smooth of an experience as possible so you’re not facing stuttering situations.

The Apple Vision Pro takes alot of features and ideas from the Meta Quest and creates a new vision for it in a way that only Apple could, giving you a clear understanding that this device can be used while you’re doing everyday things. Is that what actually happens? Not necessarily and that’s more because of some of its limitations having to do with not having any controls to play or use things that would require it, not being able to access certain features or web pages that are naturally blocked by the device. What I got was something I would love if it didn’t have a crazy price tag of $3500.

Like most things competition is good so the natural existence of the Apple Vision Pro makes for some pretty innoviating ideas and makers that had yet to jump into the VR space, but like many things it wasn’t too difficult to port a version of these experiences onto the Meta Quest 3 through developers and users already deep into this space. So here’s where I’m back with the Meta Quest 3 and I’ll tell you how things seem to be like now but first an overview of the Quest 3 as a whole.

Design:

At 18.2 ounces, the Quest 3 is just a hair heavier than the Quest 2 (17.7 ounces), but noticeably less bulky. Not counting the headband, the headset is just 2.2 inches deep from the front to the top of the face mask padding (down from 2.6 inches). The sides of the white-gray chassis are more rounded, making it seem even smaller than the flat-walled Quest 2. It looks and feels much more streamlined and compact.

If you’ve been following along, I like to play Fortnite on occasion (read: all the time with my adult friends), and I figured the Quest 3 — since I don’t have a handheld gaming device to call my own — was an easy way to do that while I was staying with my parents. So I packed the headset, both Quest controllers, and a separate Xbox controller that plugs into my headset, and set off.

While I was at it, I figured I’d give my whole family a demo of the headset. Living vicariously, after all, is a great way to gain perspective. First I started with my parents; my dad is 79 years old, and my mom is 66. Unsurprisingly, neither of them had ever used a VR headset before, let alone one that’s mixed reality-ready. I did what any millennial son would do and situated that headset on their faces, loaded up a good demonstration of how mixed reality works (a game called First Encountersthat involves capturing a bunch of fuzzy aliens in your living room), gave them both very brief instructions, and then whipped out my phone to record the whole thing for Instagram.

What I captured wasn’t just a low-brow video of my parents looking goofy, it was something sociological, something pure, something… magical. Without any frame of reference for mixed reality, both my mom and dad picked up the game easily, scooting around the room and blasting cartoon aliens into submission. Their review? Mostly “wow.” My dad even went back for a couple of rounds.

What I saw, through them (and myself) was excitement — not just for a specific game, but for a category of technology.

Likewise, when I let my nephew (9 years old) and my niece (6 years old) try the headset, their learning curve was equally as brief. I was able to adjust the Quest 3’s standard head strap to fit both of them and with some brief instructions, they were off hunting aliens.

What I saw, through them (and myself) was excitement — not just for a specific game, but for a category of technology. And then it clicked. Mixed reality is cool, it is futuristic — and the best part? It’s here and it’s now and it’s pretty damn affordable.

Inside of the Quest 3’s app store, Meta Store, there’s a surprisingly robust array of VR and XR games that (while not as cheap as a mobile game) are still pretty damn affordable. About $25 to $60 will buy you an experience like Samba de Amigo: Virtual Party or Asgard’s Wrath 2which offer not only hours of gameplay, but an experience unlike most any regular console or PC game. Plus, there are near-constantsales in the Meta store if you’re looking to save a little money.

Then there’s the overall ease. The Quest 3 is light (enough to pack in my backpack and not feel the weight) and light enough to slide over your head without feeling like you’ll need a trip to the chiropractor when you’re done.

I can’t remember the last time I saw a gadget bring as much intrigue and joy to all ages…

And then there’s the price. Sure, $499 ain’t nothin’, but when compared to the rest of the field, Apple’s $3,500 Vision Pro in particular, it starts to look like a steal.

So what does all that ease and affordability add up to? In my opinion, it adds up to fun. I can’t remember the last time I saw a gadget bring as much intrigue and joy to all ages, and that wonderment can’t be discounted. Sure, there are still barriers: wearing headsets isn’t always the most comfortable thing in the world, especially over long periods, and limited battery life rears its head when you’re playing a graphics-intensive game. That’s not even accounting for motion sickness or eyestrain.

But when you look at the Quest 3 for what it is — a really, really, futuristic toy — those gripes don’t seem to matter as much. Headsets may not be the ultimate form factor for VR or XR (Meta wants to see all of the Quest’s tech condensed into more glasses-like hardware) but right now, the Quest 3 is offering a glimpse of the future, and that glimpse is a hell of a lot more polished and fluid than you might expect.

The $499 Meta Quest 3 is a fantastic standalone VR headset with its color pass-through cameras, higher resolution, faster processor, and less bulky design justify the price. So when it comes to what VR to use over the holidays or anytime it’s a no brainer the investment that Meta has made on the Quest to suceed and with so many months after the Vision Pro which has since nearly disappeard from the conversation it’s clear which one you should choose, and while you’re at it make sure you’re always connected to the internet like Verizon for a seemless expewrience which you can find here.