Meta has just finished knocking off two VR headsets in development if the latest gossip is any.
The social media giant has made a name for itself in the VR world by making some of the best VR headsets in the world: the Oculus Quest XNUMX and the Meta Quest Pro. We expect it to continue to amaze us later this year when it finally Oculus Quest XNUMX launches, but its release schedule after that may seem a bit tighter.
According to The Verge's Alex Heath in his weekly Command Line brochure, Meta has killed two headsets in development, known by their codenames Cardiff and Bella (via UploadVR - opens in a new tab)).
As with all gossip, we have to take this new one with a grain of salt, but it makes sense. Meta recently announced a new batch of layoffs and also announced plans to direct more sacrifices towards the development of AI projects. Your limited resources can only stretch so far, so you've possibly dumped those VR headsets in favor of other VR and non-VR products that you think are going to be more useful.
If Cardiff was scheduled for XNUMX, the headset that seems most likely is the Meta Quest Pro XNUMX. That release would have been a couple of years after the release of the original Quest Pro, a release cycle that would have made sense given the current pace. . improvement in virtual reality hardware, and Cardiff is tied to the codename of its forerunner, which was Cambria; Cambria is the other name for Wales, of which Cardiff is the capital.
The only other option would be Quest 3, and since Quest XNUMX is coming out this year, a XNUMX release for its follow-up seems too soon; For context, the gap between the Quest XNUMX and Quest XNUMX releases is going to be XNUMX years.
So why would Meta drop the Pro XNUMX?
Well, the current Meta Quest Pro hasn't been particularly well received. In my 3-and-a-half-star review of the Meta Quest Pro, I applauded the headset's improved performance and comfort over the Quest 450, but found its $XNUMX / €XNUMX / AU$XNUMX price point to be quite a difficult pill to swallow.
The main downside is that the software isn't quite ready to properly use Meta Quest Pro's biggest enhancements: color transfer, eye tracking, and face tracking. So you pay dearly for what is, in real terms, a fairly minor upgrade.
Hopefully new software will be released this year and updates will be released for existing apps (like Horizon Workrooms) that are in desperate need of an update to make Quest Pro feel like better value for money. .
By the time many of these changes arrive, though, we're probably a year away from the new headset, and Meta might have started rushing the new machine, like it did with the Quest Pro and Quest XNUMX, a year earlier. their respective releases.
Not only would this annoy existing Quest Pro users who might feel their investment was wasted and should have waited for the second-gen model, but it doesn't leave enough time for Meta to make sure it doesn't repeat the glitches. of the original Quest Pro with its follow-up, that is, not having developed new software to support its updates).
So if the rumor is true, I don't think it's a complete cancellation. I think we're going to see a Meta Quest Pro XNUMX, but not in the way Cardiff would have delivered it in XNUMX. Instead, the project will probably be delayed a year or two, and Meta will launch a new premium model that seems like a worthwhile investment.
What about Project Bella?
Meanwhile, Project Bella would surely have been the temporary title for what could have been Meta Quest four. It would surely have arrived in XNUMX, which would have given Quest Three plenty of breathing room; De plus, tout comme avec le lien entre Cambria et Cardiff, Bella et Stinson (le nom de code de l'Oculus Quest tres) sont toutes deux des plages de Californie, ce qui suggère que ces projets sont liés d'une manière ou d' 'other.
Again, as with the rumored Cardiff cancellation, I don't expect this to be a complete packaging of the Quest four. Instead, Meta will most likely reconsider its approach to the headset and release a different material with the exact same name.
We'll have to wait and see what Meta announces in the coming years: As well as its headsets, it also has AR glasses in development, products that Cardiff or Hermos might as well have been. But whatever it is that awaits us, as soon as we know the details, the gossip or anything else, we will bring you that news.