Meta has announced that an upcoming Quest 2 update will unlock additional performance that developers can tap into to make their games look better. Some apps will benefit from the increased performance automatically.
Meta says “no integration or coding is needed to start reaping the benefits of this improvement,” as the headset’s dynamic clocking system will automatically boost the GPU speed if it detects that an app needs it. For apps with occasional stuttering, this little boost could smooth things out.
For apps using the headset’s dynamic foveation capability (which blurs the area in the peripheral view to improve performance), Meta says the headset will boost the processor to the new 525MHz speed to maintain visual quality before blurring the peripheral area. That means apps which previously relied on cranking up the blur during demanding scenes should look better in those cases than if they didn’t have access to the extra power.
Meta says the Quest 2 performance increase is technically available as of v47, but requires a bit of a workaround to enable it each time. As of the Quest 2 v49 update the performance boost will be unlocked without any caveats.
Meta’s v47 software update for the Quest platform is packed with quality-of-life features that look to improve the user experience across Quest Pro and Quest 2, offering things like better media sync, an avatar mirror, and the ability to directly gift apps from your wishlist to friends and family. More importantly, Quest Pro is finally getting mixed reality passthrough recording in v47, and unlocking Quest Pro controller support for Quest 2.
First, here’s a look at the Quest Pro specific stuff, followed by updates affecting the whole Quest platform.
Quest Pro Updates
Meta is looking to make good use of the extra horsepower in Quest Pro, as it’s set to gradually rollout background audio playback as an experimental feature, which will let you listen to music and podcasts Browser as well as Progressive Web Applications (PWAs), which include things like 2D apps like Instagram, Facebook, and Spike, but also WebXR-based stuff too.
Not being able to record mixed reality footage was a bit of a letdown when Quest Pro launched back in late October, but now Meta says v47 will soon (again, gradual rollout) let you capture photos and videos while using mixed reality in passthrough mode. Here’s a look at how you can easily transition from VR to passthrough MR during the same recording:
Quest-wide Updates
Speaking of video capture, Meta is making it easier to capture video and images on Quest with the addition of capture controller shortcuts. Once you have v47 in-hand, you’ll be able to capture images by holding the Oculus button down and pulling the right controller trigger. To record video, hold the Oculus button and long-hold the right controller trigger.
And syncing media is supposed to be a better experience too, as Meta says it’s improving how you view, edit and share your photos and videos you capture in VR. We’re hoping the new syncing method is faster and more reliable than the previous, which promised to automatically sync to the Oculus app, but often times left us waiting for days for images and video to show up.
Meta is also unlocking Quest Pro Touch controller compatibility with Quest 2 in v47. Quest Pro’s controller is the company’s first inside-out tracked controllers due to the inclusion of its own camera sensors. That means a wider range of motion in-game since you don’t need direct line of sight between the headset and controllers.
Quest 2 Controller (top), Quest Pro Controller (bottom) | Photo by Road to VR
Many social VR apps have mirrors for easier avatar management, and now Quest will too. The v47 update lets you view and edit your avatar with a new mirror added to Home. This is set to roll out gradually and will be initially available in four environments: Desert Terrace, Space Station, Winter Lodge, and Cascadia.
Here’s a couple more goodies being added in v47:
Universal Menu Customization – You can start, find, and jump into a multiplayer session with your friends directly from the home screen. You’ll be able to pin and unpin apps from your library to your Universal Menu for quicker access to apps.
Revamped device management screen – Makes it easier to know when your headset needs to be charged.
Shareable Wishlists – Make your app wishlist public and send a link to friends and family. Modify your wishlist from the Store tab on your headset or the Meta Quest mobile app. Friends and family will be able to directly gift apps from your wishlist.
Meta Quest Digital Gift Cards – Redeemable for any app or game in the Meta Quest Store.
Among documents released by the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) earlier this week is a claim that Meta’s VR studio Camouflaj, the developers behind Marvel’s Ironman VR, have also planned a Batman VR app for release on Quest.
The apparent leak was found by Janko Roettgers, formerly of Protocol and Variety. The document in whole can be viewed here.
“In September 2022, Meta acquired Camouflaj, which currently developing Ironman and Batman VR apps for Quest.”
The information comes as a part of wider antitrust investigation into Meta’s acquisition of Within, the studio behind the VR fitness app. You can read more about that here.
Last we heard from Camouflaj before the acquisition by Meta, the studio said it had “exciting things on the horizon,” maintaining it was still “all-in on VR.”
Over the past two years Meta hasn’t sold its VR headsets in Germany due to an ongoing antitrust suit in that country that alleges the forced linkage between its virtual reality products and Facebook was an anticompetitive practice. Now it seems that’s about to change, as regulators have intimated that Meta may be free and clear soon to resume sales in Germany.
As reported by German VR publication MIXED, residents of Europe’s largest economy will soon be able to order Quest 2 and Quest Pro, which are both set to be available in-country by the end of this year.
After the sales halt in September 2020, Germany-based customers had to import Meta VR devices, which was typically done by buying from online retailers based in neighboring European countries, such as France’s Amazon.fr or Italy’s Amazon.it.
Resuming sales in Germany is directly linked to Meta’s backtracking on forced Facebook logins in August. Andreas Mundt, President of Germany’s Federal Cartel Office which is tasked with antitrust enforcement in that country, calls this a “welcome development,” although the process is still not concluded.
Here’s Mundt’s full statement, translated to English:
With Meta’s digital ecosystem created with a very large number of users, the company is the key player in the social media space. Meta also has a significant position in the growing VR market. If the use of VR glasses were only possible for Facebook or Instagram members, this could severely affect competition in both areas. Meta has responded to our concerns and offered a solution by setting up a separate Meta account to use the Quest glasses. Despite this welcome development, we are not concluding the process today. First of all, we want to continue to accompany the actual design of the options for users as well as topics of the merging and processing of user data from the various meta-services.
Although a Meta spokesperson tells MIXED that both Quest 2 and the new Quest Pro will be available in-country at some point this year, the exact date is unclear.
Thanks to our reader Blaexe for pointing out that it wasn’t a block, but an anticipatory halt on Meta’s part during the ongoing antitrust suit. We’ve changed wording to reflect this.
