This is the Oculus Quest 2. And it's really really cool. Facebook has sold more than 10 million of
these since launch, making it the company's most successful headset. But what makes it
so good? And what can you actually do with it? Well I bought one just to find out. This is the
128 gigabyte version, and after playing around with it for a few weeks, I finally understand.
You see the Quest 2 has improved upon the Quest 1, both in terms of the display and the processing
power. But it's not just the hardware specs that's interesting. Since launch, the Quest 2 has
also added in 120hz support, as well as Airlink which is a wireless technology. But what really
sets the quest to apart is that it's able to run standalone. You see typically VR headsets require
some kind of connection to the pc for data, and a base station to track the joysticks. The Quest 2
does away with all that and instead has a built-in processor for data and a bunch of internal sensors
to do the tracking. This reduces setup time and greatly improves ease of use. What's more, at 300
is the cheapest out of all the current offerings. But that low price is probably because Facebook is
profiting off your data. Although you don't need to connect your Facebook account anymore, you
still have to make an Oculus account, and connect your phone, which is to say you're still giving
Facebook your data. But privacy issues aside the quest 2 is still an impressive piece of kit.
Inside the box you get everything seen here. Taking a closer look at the headset, it's made
out of plastic and has a fabric strap. There's an audio jack and USB-C on the left and the volume
and power buttons are on the right. There's also two speakers, one on each side. They sound pretty
good but are a bit lacking in bass. There's three settings for the inner pupil distance,
ranging from 58 millimeters to 68. My eyes are 70 millimeters apart, which is a bit wider than the
widest option, but it still works fine for me. The main downside to this design is that if you want
to share this headset with anyone you have to readjust it for them and then readjust it back,
so it fits your head. And if you have glasses, it's going to suck- even with the glasses spacers.
But there's a workaround- you can 3d print lens inserts and order some prescription lenses
online. The foam for the Quest 2 is known to cause skin irritation, so it's recommended to use the
silicone cover. As for the joysticks, they come with a built-in lanyard and use a removable AA
battery. When I first looked at these joysticks, I was wondering what the circles are for, and it
turns out they're to protect your hands. I've hit these things against my desk several times already
and they hold up pretty well. The controllers use a proprietary wireless connection, so you can't
connect your computer to it. The cable measures in at 40 inches or a little over a meter. This
isn't quite long enough for USB tethering but it's definitely long enough for regular
charging. As for setup, the manual really doesn't say much, but there are a bunch of online guides.
Virtual Reality Oasis has done a pretty good job of that so I'll leave a link to his video down in
the description below. As for battery life, I'm able to get about 2 hours per charge and charge
time is also about 2 hours. Alright, that's enough specs let's see what this thing can actually do.
Let's start with Beat Saber. If you're wondering, this game is like Rock Band
except with lightsabers. The goal is to slash through the boxes as they come toward you,
I played this for an hour straight and it was very comfortable. One thing I did notice about this
game is that I get dropped frame rates when using bluetooth headphones. And after looking around,
it turns out the Quest 2 doesn't support bluetooth very well. VR also brings a whole new level of
immersion for first person shooters. In Pavlov, reloading is really cool. It's a whole sequence
of actions and coordination, but the game does cause motion sickness. Here, when I walk around
my eyes are saying that I'm moving but my ears and body are saying I'm stationary. And it's
these conflicting signals that make my brain all confused. I was able to last about five minutes
before having to put the headset down. Some games like rec room try to remedy this issue by adding a
binocular effect when moving. It helps a bit, but I still experience some motion sickness.
Another alternative is to completely remove the motion altogether, like in Half-Life Alyx.
Here movement is done by teleporting, and personally I like this implementation the best,
but it doesn't quite feel natural. Ideally the best solution would be to somehow trick my ears
and body into thinking that I'm moving. But until that happens, movement is always going to be an
issue. Besides VR games, there's also 2D games that can be streamed from the desktop PC. Here,
I'm using an app called Virtual Desktop, because I found it to be the best for playing wirelessly.
Moving the cards around feels responsive but when I shake the cards around it doesn't feel
very smooth. I have all the settings at 120 hertz so it might have to do with the transmit rate of
the controllers. Either way it's definitely a worthwhile experience. I tried out a few other
games and it was pretty much the same big screen experience. The only main complaint I have is that
the colors on the Quest 2 are very flat. That is to say it doesn't look as vibrant as my monitors.
I guess this is where Facebook decided to cut corners to keep the cost low. To some people
this might not matter but for scenic games like Horizon 5, then it takes away from the experience.
One of the most underrated applications is videos. In the Youtube VR app, there's dedicated channels
for 360 degree content like AirPano VR. You get to fly over waterfalls, mountains, and all sorts of
scenic areas. And words really can't describe how impressive this is. Maybe the biggest downside is
that Youtube only streams up to 4k and the colors look a bit washed out. Now 8k 120hz VR content
does exist, but they're mostly found on novelty sites. There's also an option for regular 2D
content and just like gaming it feels like you're watching it on a really big screen. This could be
extremely useful if you live in a crowded dorm and just don't have the space to mount a projector.
But one of the use cases that's really caught my eye is productivity. The dream would be to get rid
of my desk setup and work anywhere in my house. Oculus announced AirLink, which is a program
that mirrors a pc wirelessly. Unfortunately AirLink does require a pretty powerful system
and good internet connections. The other issue is that the resolution is just too low to do actual
work. Small texts don't get rendered well, and there's not much you can do about that.
The interface is also clunky and here's me trying to do a quick search.
Facebook has also launched another program called Horizon Workrooms, This is basically an office
environment simulator. Here, I only get a single monitor, but you can still remote into my pc
and instead of a virtual keyboard. I have to use a combination of hand gestures and a bluetooth
keyboard. It's a neat idea but the sensors don't pick up on hand gestures very well.
Unfortunately it's still in beta so there's still a lot of missing features,
but it shows promise and I hope to test it out in the future.
Now one thing that doesn't get mentioned much is the hidden cost of owning this device. Games like
Beat Saber typically costs $35CAD or $30USD, and you don't even get all the songs. For those you
have to purchase them extra. You can also get hardware upgrades for the Quest 2, like a more
comfortable elite strap. If you want to connect to SteamVR, then you'll either need a long USB cable
or use Virtual Desktop for wireless connections. And of course, there's custom lenses if you wear
glasses. My point is, to get the most out of the headset you have to buy into the ecosystem.
Alright that was a lot of information, so let's summarize. The Quest 2 starts at $300USD,
making a great entry point to try out VR. The unit can run standalone, so there's no tethering
or base stations involved. There's consistent updates, and it's already received a bunch of
new features since launch. VR brings a whole new level of immersion to games and video,
but it's a double-edged sword and can cause motion sickness. As for the negatives, the Quest
2 does require a phone and an online account for setup, which can cause privacy concerns.
There's only three settings for the inner pupil distance, so it won't fit properly if you're way
outside of that range. Compared to 2D there's very limited content for VR games and videos.
Productivity is still in the rough and will have to wait a few years of development before
it matures. Finally there's a bunch of hidden costs which can quickly add up. Overall,
the Quest 2 is an amazing device, even if you don't play any games. Getting to experience the
latest VR technology is worth the $300 price tag. I personally like using mine to play Beat
Saber and watch nature documentaries. Alright that's it like and subscribe.