Meta has announced plans to start the production of its recently launched Quest 3S headsets in Vietnam, starting next year. The Quest 3S headset, which is designed to offer mixed reality features similar to the higher-end Quest 3, comes at a more accessible price point of around $299.
The announcement was made by Nick Clegg, Meta"s President of Global Affairs, during a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Hanoi today.
Meta has been embracing its commitment to virtual reality and the metaverse, ever since its rebranding from Facebook to Meta in 2021. Since then, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has consistently emphasized the idea that VR will redefine how we interact with technology. He argues that just as smartphones revolutionized communication, the metaverse will transform our daily lives as well.
Zuckerberg has also expressed frustration with existing closed ecosystems, like Apple"s, pushing for an open model instead, that should essentially encourage innovation and accessibility in VR development. His philosophy is evident in Meta"s recent launch of open source AI models, like the Llama 3.2.
Meta has been previously manufacturing its VR headsets primarily in China and Taiwan, utilizing a complex supply chain, as the devices need specialized materials and manufacturing capabilities that aren"t readily available in the U.S. Shifting the production of the Quest 3S to Vietnam can help Meta further offset some of the costs that are associated with manufacturing, and also slightly reduce reliance on China.
The Quest 3S runs on the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chip as the higher-end Quest 3. It supports full-color pass through as well as the same Touch Plus controllers. The only major difference between the two is the slimmer pancake lenses found on the Quest 3 versus the bulkier body of the Quest 3S which is similar to the Quest 2 due to its fresnel lenses. But hey, the Quest 3S is cheaper at $299 for the base model, while Meta has also reduced the price of the Quest 3 from $649 to $499 for the 512GB variant.