Apple Vision Pro vs Meta Quest 3: What are the differences?

Apple presented the Apple Vision Pro last Monday. This new showpiece is impressive, but also very expensive. But how does it compare to Meta’s Quest 3? Here’s what we know so far.

First of all, we have to say that we are very impressed with the Apple Vision Pro. You control the VR/AR headset with your hands, eyes and voice. Your apps are now accessible wherever you are, without needing a screen nearby. You can view your content using spatial audio, giving you a completely new experience.

The Apple Vision Pro is considerably more expensive than the Meta Quest 3

The first major difference between the two headsets is immediately apparent. The Vision is seven times as expensive as the Quest 3. For the first you have to cough up $ 3,499 (so probably 4,000 euros in the Netherlands). The Quest 3 will cost 569.99 euros.

The Vision Pro fits perfectly with Apple’s existing designs. The construction resembles a curved iPhone that you put on your face. In addition, it combines elements of the Apple Watch.

Apple’s device is equipped with all sorts of cameras and sensors that not only enable the pass-through functionality for augmented reality, but also take it a step further with an external screen that shows the wearer’s eyes and expressions from the inside. That’s something we haven’t seen with previous VR and AR headsets such as the Meta Quest 2, Pro and later this year the 3.

Meanwhile, the Quest 3 is claimed to be a whopping 40 percent thinner than its predecessor, the Quest 2. Still, it still appears to be a somewhat larger, more robust chunk of plastic compared to the Apple’s sleek metal-and-glass design. VisionPro.

The Quest 3 is equipped with external cameras and a depth sensor, allowing full augmented reality passthrough. Unfortunately, an external screen is missing to show your face while wearing the headset. The Quest 2 has no passthrough anyway and is therefore unable to create mixed reality.

Extremely high resolution

The dual internal displays of the Apple Vision Pro have an image resolution that exceeds 4K for each eye. That’s absurdly sharp. While we don’t have official specs yet, Apple says the screens collectively contain more than 23 million pixels. And that is very pleasant for your eyes, especially if you quickly get sick of VR.

We don’t yet know how sharp the Quest 3’s displays will be, but Meta claims it’s sharper than the 1,832 x 1,920 pixel image the Quest 2 offers. The Quest 2 doesn’t come close to a 4K resolution per eye anyway. A hands-on from Bloomberg states that the Quest 3 doesn’t seem much sharper than the Quest 2 in practice.

Is the Meta Quest 3 going to win in terms of battery life?

The Vision Pro doesn’t have a built-in battery, and instead you get an external battery that Apple says offers around two hours of run time. It fits in your pocket or you can put it next to you when you’re sitting. You can also use a plug so that you can continue to use the headset.

How long the Quest 3 will last is still a mystery, but the Quest 2 can be used for three hours on a full charge. In addition, a special Elite Strap is available that doubles the duration with an extra battery. Meta hasn’t yet released how the Quest 3 performs in that area.

Is the Apple Vision Pro or the Meta Quest 3 the biggest powerhouse?

The difference between the Apple Vision Pro and the Meta Quest 3 is largely a comparison of a powerful computer with a powerful smartphone. And this is also decisive for how immersive apps and games will look.

Apple uses the M2 processor found in recent Macs to power the Vision Pro. The company combines this with the new R1 chip that handles the data from the cameras and sensors.

The Meta Quest 3 is rumored to have the Snapdragon Qualcomm XR2 chip, which is specifically designed for these types of devices. However, this one is based on smartphone chips. Meta says you’ll get twice the graphics performance compared to the Quest 2, but it probably won’t match the Vision Pro.

Which headset is better for gamers?

The Apple Vision Pro is primarily marketed for productivity and as an entertainment device. Gaming, as it stands now, is secondary. Of course it does run Apple Arcade games and new VR and AR games are probably also being developed in the meantime. What those will be remains to be seen.

The Meta Quest platform does already have a plethora of fantastic VR games, such as Beat Saber, Resident Evil 4, Pistol whip and Super Hot VR. These games will therefore run even better on the Quest 3. Meta has also hinted at the development of AR games.

All in all, they are two impressive headsets, but the difference in price is significant. We can therefore assume that the target group for next year’s Vision will be a particularly niche market. As soon as we can test the two impressive VR/AR headsets, we will of course let you know.

And of course we were present at ‘dubdub’, check Mark’s report!