The history of technological innovation is paved with leaks about future products. And in this story, the prototypes forgotten by testers and engineers in a bar, on the seat of a taxi or elsewhere occupy a place of choice.
This time, the story takes place in a hotel, where a tester would have forgotten the prototype of the next virtual reality headset Meta Quest Pro.
Zectariuz Gaming’s Facebook page revealed the leak. Its author posted recorded video of himself taking the device out of its packaging. The account also posted several photos, but these appear to have been deleted as of this writing.
The outer sleeve of the Meta Quest Pro potential package. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Redesigned design
The abandoned prototype, which was later claimed by its rightful owner (per The Verge), appears to correspond to “Project Cambria”. Meta had mentioned this helmet project recently, in content relating to virtual reality and the metaverse.
The helmet in its packaging. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
The interior design of the device appears to be shaped like a “halo” – much like the PlayStation VR and PlayStation VR 2 headsets – allowing the screens to hang in front of the user’s eyes by distributing the weight around their head, rather than relying on a goggle-like mounting system that clamps the head-mounted display against the user’s face and nose, as the Quest 1 and Quest 2 did.
The front appears to feature three cameras, with others mounted around the perimeter. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Difficult to be sure, but the Fresnel lenses of the previous models do not seem to be present. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
The light ring that Quest 2 controllers use to track their orientation in space appears to have been replaced with a more solid design. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Along with a radically revamped headset design, the new headset’s controllers also appear to have undergone a complete overhaul. The new design is slightly more compact, features a different button layout, and better hides the LEDs or sensors used by Meta avoiding the light rings of Quest 1 and 2.
Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Towards a new era of accessories?
A new flat and angled location for the user’s thumb also seems to have been added, which I’m personally looking forward to testing. I’ve never found a comfortable place to put that thumb without accidentally pressing a button on the Quest 2 controller.
Finally, we can see on the side of the controller a small indentation with what looks like three metal contacts. This pogo-pin type connector could, if we give free rein to our imagination, accommodate additional accessories such as new sensors or control peripherals. Imagine, for example, a two-handed gun stock that could connect to both controllers at once for an FPS-like experience, or a fishing rod handle with a built-in reel you could spin.
Third-party accessory makers have been trying to create such products for years, but they’ve run into a lack of manufacturer support. That could be about to change.
Next in October?
The leaked prototype is said to be back at Meta. We therefore only have to wait for the month of October to learn more about this new model.
What can be said is that Facebook’s new VR headset appears to sport a slimmer profile, and it promises some intriguing changes.
The side view gives the impression that the device is significantly thinner than the Meta Quest 2. One can also see one of the rim-mounted cameras mentioned earlier. Image: Zectariuz Gaming.
Source: ZDNet.com