The Oculus Quest 2 VR headset has been fully leaked via two promotional videos uploaded to a marketing hub operated by parent company Facebook. The videos describe the technical specifications of the standalone headset, which is a successor to Oculus Quest from 2019. The website also has two live demos of the headset scheduled for September 16 and 17. That fits in well with a previously rumored start date for Quest 2 on September 15th.
According to the videos, the new headset will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 platform, which is specifically designed for AR and VR hardware (as opposed to the general-purpose Snapdragon 835 that was used to power the original Quest). A video shows that the Quest 2 has an “almost 4K display”, which means “almost 2K per eye”. A second video says it’s 50 percent more pixels than the original Quest. The headset also has 6GB of RAM (from 4GB) and up to 256GB of storage (from a maximum of 128GB), plus 3D positional audio and the return of controller-free hand tracking.
While the videos include a lot of new details about the Oculus Quest 2, there are still a few questions. At first it is not clear how high the refresh rate of the display will be. Previous reports stated that they could ramp up from 72 Hz to 90 Hz or even 120 Hz to indicate smoother movement. The size or weight of the headset is also not mentioned. Previous reports suggested the Quest 2 would be less bulky than the original Quest, but the videos simply refer to the new hardware as “optimized” and “lightweight”.
The new headset has a higher resolution display and comes with updated controllers.
The videos mention a new soft-touch strap that makes it easier to put on and take off the headset, as well as a pair of updated controllers with “new ergonomics,” which Oculus says should make it more convenient to use. Oculus Link support also returns for Quest 2, so you can connect the headset to a PC with a USB-C cable and play PC-based VR games.
This isn’t our first look at the new headset, the pictures of which leaked back in July.
The Oculus Quest 2 is expected to be the first headset Facebook will release after its controversial decision to sign Oculus users through a Facebook account. Although users of the company’s existing headsets will be able to use a separate Oculus account through 2023, Facebook says future devices will require a Facebook login regardless of whether they already have a separate Oculus account.
There’s no word on how much the headset will cost, but a now-removed Walmart listing suggested that its 256GB variant could retail for $ 399. With the Facebook Connect developer conference slated to begin on September 16, an official announcement is likely not too far away.
Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that the original Oculus Quest had a 60 Hz display. This is wrong, it actually had a 72 Hz display. Previous reports also indicated that the headset would become less bulky and no longer bulky as mentioned earlier.
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