Meta launches Quest Pro VR headset, ropes in Microsoft to build work apps for VR

Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg announced a new virtual reality headset Meta Quest Pro at the company’s annual Connect event on Tuesday. The headset will be available in the US from October 25 at $1,499. The headset also supports mixed reality (MR), according to Zuckerberg, and comes with Meta Quest Touch Pro controllers, stylus tips, partial light blockers, and a charging dock. 

Meta also announced new business partnerships with Microsoft and Accenture and said that it will launch Quest for Business next year. It will be a subscription-based bundle for Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest Pro devices and will include features such as device and app management. 

Through the partnership with Microsoft, Meta plans to bring productivity tools like Microsoft 365 app to Quest devices, integration with Microsoft Teams/Workrooms, Meta Avatars in Microsoft Teams, and extend Microsoft Intune and Azure Active Directory support for Quest devices.

Similarly, Meta is counting on the partnership with Accenture to drive the adoption of its hardware and software by businesses. 

“The main reason that we're in this space is that we think that VR can be very powerful for social connection and with the Quest Pro, we want to bring more of that into the work context as well, where Microsoft already has some incredibly successful products in the market,” said Zuckerberg. 

The Meta Quest Oro is an advanced version of Project Cambrai, which was unveiled at last year’s Facebook Connect event. Quest Pro is the first device that is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ platform for VR headsets. 

Meta claims that Quest Pro uses a new optical stack, which uses thin pancake optics that can fold light several times to reduce the depth of the optical module by 40%, resulting in clear and sharp visuals as compared to Fresnel lenses used in Meta Quest 2 devices. The Quest Pro also has 37% more pixels per inch and 10% greater pixels per degree as compared to the Meta Quest 2. 

The new VR headset also has eye tracking and natural facial expressions so the virtual avatars can reflect users more naturally in VR.

Meta’s Quest devices will play a key role in the company’s metaverse project. Meta’s Reality Labs division, which is behind the company’s VR and AR innovation, has suffered losses amounting to over $10 billion in 2021, according to Meta’s fourth-quarter 2021 earnings report, published in February. 

According to an October report by International Data Corporation (IDC), the VR headsets market grew 31.9% year-on-year (YoY) during Q2 2022. Meta continues to be the market leader accounting for 85.9% of the VR shipments. 

Meta claims users have spent over $1.5 billion on games and apps in the Meta Quest Store so far.