Beyond the Paper Specs – Road to VR

Quest Professional has lastly been revealed, and whereas it’s a way more costly headset, inevitably individuals are desirous about figuring out the way it compares to Meta’s subsequent finest headset, Quest 2. So right here we’re going to take a look at Quest Professional vs Quest 2 specs side-by-side and break down what they actually imply intimately.

There’s a lot about XR headsets that’s troublesome to speak from paper specs alone. So much like my PSVR vs. PSVR 2 spec comparability right here we’ll take a look at the numbers and I’ll use my latest experiences with the headset to clarify extra about what they do or don’t imply.

So then, let’s speak about all of this.

Show & Optics

That is one a part of the spec sheet that’s really fairly simple. With practically the identical decision between Quest Professional and Quest 2, there’s simply not going to be an actual leap in resolving energy between them. That mentioned, Meta claims Quest Professional ought to take a look at least a bit sharper due to the optics.

The large cope with the brand new pancake optics in Quest Professional is that they’ve allowed the headset to shrink so it doesn’t really feel fairly as very like a field in your face. However Meta additionally says they’re clearer, providing a 25% enhance in sharpness on the middle, and a 50% enhance within the peripheral area.

That ought to imply the Quest Professional has a a lot better ‘candy spot’ (the variance in readability from one fringe of the lens to different). Nonetheless, it’s not obvious to me but if these supposed will increase in sharpness are particular to simply the optics or in the event that they embody Quest Professional’s show as nicely—in any case, in case your resolving energy is basically restricted by the variety of pixels on the show, rising the readability of the lens received’t make any distinction (I’ve been trying to make clear this with Meta).

Granted, we all know that the periphery of Quest 2’s lens is positively restricted by the lens moderately than the show, so any enhance there’s positive to be an enchancment within the general candy spot of the lens, particularly if it’s actually by 50%!

Concerning the refresh fee of Quest Professional and Quest 2… whereas the latter initially shipped with a 72Hz refresh fee, it could now run as much as 120Hz. Quest Professional then again tops out at 90Hz, and sources inform me it’s unlikely that it’ll enhance after launch.

90Hz is essentially thought of the {industry} commonplace for a ‘good’ refresh fee on a VR headset, whereas something increased has confirmed to be a nice-to-have however not fairly important function. On Quest 2 solely a small variety of apps really run at 120Hz. I’d wager the bulk really goal 72Hz.

Optical Changes

Right here Quest Professional will get some upgrades that I’m blissful to see. Whereas each headsets technically have a bodily IPD adjustment and eye-relief adjustment, Quest 2 is considerably hampered on this regard as a result of the lenses can solely be positioned in three discrete IPD positions (58mm, 63mm, 68mm) and the eye-relief solely has two positions. Neither of those changes could be simply made whereas carrying the headset itself.

Quest Professional then again positive aspects a steady adjustment for each IPD (55–75mm) and eye-relief. And each changes are made with dials on the headset, making it simpler for anybody to search out one of the best lens place with much less fiddling.

And one small however significant bonus on Quest Professional comes from its eye-tracking sensors… the headset will mechanically measure the space between the consumer’s eyes and inform them to place the lenses within the appropriate place. That is nice as a result of most individuals don’t really know their IPD worth, regardless of it being fairly vital to XR units, nor are most individuals significantly good at discovering the best IPD place by visible inference.

Processor & RAM

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 is the industry-standard chip for immersive XR headsets, and it has faithfully powered Quest 2 because the headset’s launch two years in the past. However for Quest Professional, and all of its additional sensors, Meta wanted extra energy. As a substitute of ready for the next-gen XR2 chip, the corporate labored with Qualcomm on an interim answer which it calls Snapdragon XR2+.

My understanding is that XR2+ is—transistor for transistor—actually the identical chip as XR2 however backed up by twice the RAM (12GB) and a greater cooling answer which permits it to run at increased speeds with out overheating. Anybody who has ever overclocked their PC is aware of simply how a lot warmth is a limiting think about processor efficiency; Meta’s declare that Quest Professional is getting some 50% extra energy out of the identical chip isn’t unreasonable.

The large query on my thoughts is how a lot of that further energy interprets to a headset that may run current content material at increased constancy versus how a lot of the additional energy is reserved for the headset’s system-level capabilities. I might guess the vast majority of the additional energy goes to the latter—in any case, Quest Professional not solely has increased decision sensors, it has six further sensors in comparison with Quest 2. All of that additional incoming knowledge must be processed with as little latency as attainable.

Assuming that’s the case, current Quest 2 video games most likely received’t run any higher on Quest Professional, whereas the advantages in processing energy will come within the type of new apps that reap the benefits of system-level capabilities like improved passthrough and face-tracking.

I’ve requested Meta and third-party builders for more information on this entrance. Particularly I’m to know if an app that doesn’t want face-tracking can faucet into the cycles that might have in any other case been reserved for that function.

Discipline-of-view

That is one other place the place the specs as we see them are pretty clear: there isn’t a very apparent distinction to me within the field-of-view between the 2 headsets.

Nonetheless, a pleasant little bonus from the brand new steady eye-relief adjustment on Quest Professional is that everybody will be capable of transfer the lenses as near their eyes as they’re snug with. With various facial topography, folks can expertise pretty completely different fields-of-view when the lens place is static. The flexibility to maneuver the lenses ahead and again means extra folks will be capable of expertise Quest Professional’s most discipline of view than if the lenses couldn’t transfer.

One other word on field-of-view is that Quest Professional is designed with an open peripheral view (in comparison with Quest 2 which blocks as a lot of the surface world as attainable). That is intentional to make the headset’s passthrough mode really feel extra pure (since the true world in your periphery matches up with the passthrough view within the middle of your imaginative and prescient.

Thoughtfully, Quest Professional additionally ships with ‘mild blockers’ which magnetically connect to cover a lot of the surface peripheral view. An elective ‘full mild blocker’ accent goes even additional and offers a extra full face-gasket for blocking out as a lot of the surface world as attainable.

Sooner or later it will be good to see some form of dynamic answer to opening or closing the peripheral field-of-view to the true world, however in any case, Quest Professional will get good marks for a excessive degree of flexibility on this regard.

Proceed on Web page 2: Weight, Battery Life, Controller Monitoring, & Extra »