Meta may be permanently phasing out the stock of the Meta Quest 2, marking the end of an era for mainstream virtual reality.
The original Quest headset is also approaching its digital end. Meta’s online stores worldwide have run out of the Quest 2, except in the UK, where the 128GB variant is still available for £199.
The Quest 2 has reportedly sold over 20 million units, making it the most popular mainstream VR headset ever. In comparison, Sony’s original PlayStation VR has sold around five million units.
The crucial question for existing Quest 2 owners is when support for the 2020 headset will end. This process has already started, as several new games, including Batman: Arkham Shadow and Alien: Rogue Incursion, have been announced for Quest 3 but not for Quest 2.
Meta is likely to implement a strict support cut-off for the Quest 2 in the future, similar to what it did with its predecessor. The cessation of support for the first Quest was announced in 2023, and on June 29, 2024, Meta declared the end of hardware support for the headset as of August 31.
These modern VR headsets differ from traditional game consoles. However, the Quest 2 is expected to receive significantly longer support than the original Quest due to its large user base.
Meta faces a balancing act—encouraging users to upgrade to newer Quest models without drastically reducing the total audience. The upgrade might be more affordable than anticipated, as Meta is expected to launch a budget version of the Meta Quest 3 later this year, likely named the Quest 3S or Quest 3 Lite. This version is expected to feature an upgraded processor and color passthrough, but without all the expensive enhancements of the standard Quest 3.
Povezani članci
Pico to Unveil New XR Product on August 20th in Special Event
Netflix Removes Its App from Quest Store: What This Means for Users