When Facebook rebranded to Meta and dropped the Oculus brand in the process, it announced at the time it was hard at work on a new VR headset codenamed Project Cambria. But even before that announcement, Meta had dropped plenty of hints about the “Oculus Quest Pro” headset in the pipeline.
We have plenty of official and unofficial information on Meta’s next VR headset, including design renders, specs, estimated pricing, announcement timing, and more. If you’re deciding whether to buy the Quest 2 or wait for the Quest 2 Pro, we’ll give you the information you need to decide.
Are Oculus Quest Pro and Project Cambria the same thing?
Back in March 2021, Mark Zuckerberg gave a podcast interview on VR in which he talked about a future Oculus Quest Pro headset. He described how it would use face and eye tracking to support realistic avatars with matching facial expressions. He also mentioned that the lenses needed to be improved to better recreate the world outside the headset for mixed-reality experiences.
Similarly, during an April Twitter Spaces interview, Oculus CTO John Carmack described how some at Oculus felt they needed to push the envelope rather than perfect the Quest 2 design. That camp felt that “we need depth cameras, we need mixed reality sensors, we need eye tracking, we need face tracking.” So they began to actively develop a “Pro version” of the Quest that will use “every sensor in the kitchen sink.”
Why does this matter? Because what little was revealed about Project Cambria during the Metaverse livestream (embedded above at the relevant timestamp) all revolved around these very features. Angela Chang, Oculus Director of Products, described how, with Project Cambria, “your avatar will be able to make natural eye contact and reflect your facial expressions in real time.”
Chang also described how Meta’s new “high-resolution, colored, mixed reality Passthrough” is better designed “to represent your physical world in the headset with a sense of depth and perspective.”
Zuckerberg explained that Project Cambria “isn’t the next Quest,” which means it isn’t the Quest 3 – that’s expected to launch in 2023. But it is “compatible with Quest” and will feature Meta’s “most advanced technology.” That certainly sounds like a Quest Pro headset to us.
We’re fairly confident in this guess, so for the rest of this explainer, we’ll operate under the assumption that the Quest 2 Pro and Project Cambria are the same device.
When will the Quest Pro / Project Cambria ship?
During the 2021 Metaverse event, Angela Chain specifically said, “next year we are releasing a new product that will push the boundaries of VR even further. We’ve codenamed it Project Cambria. “Barring any unexpected delays, it will arrive in 2022.
Quest 2 Pro (SeaCliff) – MiniLED – Connect 2022Quest 3 (Eureka865) – ??? – Connect 2023Quest 3 Pro (SeaBright) – uOLED – Connect 2023April 11, 2022
As for when in 2022, an earlier Quest Pro leak suggested the headset would arrive in “Q2 2022,” meaning anytime from April to June. However, leakers Brad Lynch and Ming-Chi Kuo now agree it’ll arrive much later in the year. Kuo claimed the second half of 2022, while Lynch specifically said Meta will announce it at Connect 2022, which will likely take place in October.
What will the Quest Pro cost?
Zuckerberg explained that “Cambria will be a completely new, advanced, and high-end product and it’ll be at the higher end of the price spectrum too. “They will test out new features with Cambria,” before we can hit the price points that we target with Quest. “
The Quest 2 128GB model costs $ 299, upping to $ 399 for more storage. So we know it’ll cost much more than that.
YouTuber Bradley Lynch, who’s spoken to several supply chain analysts about the headset, claimed in a recent video that the “bill of materials for this device is around $ 800,” but that there are rumors of a “subsidy” that could make the device slightly more affordable.
At that price point, the Quest Pro would match the $ 799 Vive Pro 2 and beat the $ 999 Valve Index, as well as the long-rumored Apple VR / AR headset that’s expected to cost anywhere between $ 1,000 and $ 3,000.
Will the Quest Pro be wired or wireless?
While Meta didn’t say it outright, you can be certain the Quest Pro won’t be wired like the discontinued Oculus Rift S. Pro doesn’t necessarily mean pro-level graphics, and thanks to wireless Air Link, relying fully on wires for everything is kind of obsolete from a VR perspective.
Zuckerberg did say that Project Cambria will be “compatible with Quest,” which means it needs to support the Quest library of games. That includes roomscale experiences, which would be very difficult to support with a fully-wired VR headset. Also, you can look at the shadowy promo image of Cambria from the livestream, or leaked images of the Quest Pro like the one above. It has no wires in sight.
What’s new with the Quest Pro design vs. the Quest 2?
YouTuber SadlyItsBradley recently leaked a ton of information on Project Cambria, including its design and specs. Working with 3D artist Marcus Kane, they created renders of the headset based on real-life photos leaked to Lynch by someone with a Cambria developer kit.
Based on these renders and previous leaks from other sources, Cambria will have an Elite Strap with Battery-style strap with a tightening knob on the back and a built-in battery pack. And in lieu of a foam face cover, it’ll have a faux leather cover that extends onto the forehead for added support.
Whereas the Quest 2 is very front-heavy, Project Cambria looks more like a pair of glasses with a much thinner front. This is thanks to the lenses’ “pancake optics,” which “fold light several times over” so they can have a thinner, lighter profile with “several optical layers.” Those quotes come directly from Meta, by the way, so this leaked design tracks with the official info.
Overall, this means you’ll have a much more lightweight headset, even with the Elite Strap built in.
While Cambria’s front is mostly a solid, glossy black, it has transparent portions that allow the built-in cameras to peer through at your surroundings. Lynch says the two bottom cameras create a “Lua composite” while the middle 16MP HD camera overlays color and improved resolution on top of the other cameras’ faster visual data. Combined, they’ll offer a much better passthrough experience than the Quest 2’s wimpy cameras can offer.
Lynch also claimed we’ll see an improvement on how IPD adjustment is handled, a problem area with the Quest 2. Like that headset, Cambria will have sliding lenses you’ll physically drag instead of using a knob. But the newer headset is “smooth all the way through,” and will apparently have a higher maximum IPD because of the separate displays.
Proud of the research Michael Abrash’s team is working on at FRL-R Redmond — excited to get an early look at some of the technologies that will underpin the metaverse (we work on several prototype headsets to prove out concepts, this is one of them. Kind of. It’s a long story.) pic.twitter.com/Yi9xjy5HmGProud of the research Michael Abrash’s team is working on at FRL-R Redmond — excited to get an early look at some of the technologies that will underpin the metaverse (we work on several prototype headsets to prove out concepts, this is one of them. Kind of. It’s a long story.) pic.twitter.com/Yi9xjy5HmG– Boz (@boztank) October 13, 2021October 13, 2021
For a more real-life look, future CTO of Meta Andrew Bosworth showed off a “prototype” headset in early October that looks fairly similar to the leaked Quest Pro and teased Cambria renders, including better rear head support and more sculpted lenses. It’s not a one-to-one match, though, as it lacks the protruding forehead padding.
Quest Pro specs and features
Current rumors suggest the Quest 2 Pro will have mini-LED lenses with 2160×2160 resolution per eye, running at 90Hz. Compared to the Quest 2 with its 1832 × 1920 resolution per eye, it’s a pretty decent upgrade.
However, Lynch spoke to two separate sources who tried Project Cambria for themselves, and found that the resolution, field of view, and overall visual experience were all extremely similar to the Quest 2. Despite the spec upgrade, you apparently won’t see too much of a difference if you’re a regular Quest 2 user.
Lynch also confirmed in a previous video that Cambria would use the same Snapdragon XR2 chip as the Quest 2, but that it would have improved cooling that would allow for higher clock speeds. You likely won’t get a major gaming performance boost compared to the jump between the Quest 1 and 2.
Zuckerberg did say in an interview that he wanted to create custom silicon for the Quest 3, but this isn’t the Quest 3. It makes sense that Meta wouldn’t make any major changes for this headset model.
Will the Quest Pro have redesigned Oculus Touch controllers?
During a major Quest Pro leak, we got a glimpse of mysterious new controllers that lacked the halo tracking ring of the Oculus Touch. The buttons on these controllers look to have a similar configuration as the current controllers. But they also look to have inside-out cameras to help with tracking, as well as a stylus at the bottom for writing or selecting things in mid-air.
These controllers will presumably work just as well for playing your current Quest games library, while also enabling new, Cambria-exclusive experiences.
Will Project Cambria have exclusive games and apps?
During the Metaverse event, Zuckerberg talked about “unlocking more mixed reality experiences” with Cambria – such as virtual workouts and working at a desk while in-headset – while Chang said they’re “starting to work with developers to build experiences for Cambria as we speak. “
Thanks to the redesigned controllers and headset, Cambria will obviously need exclusive software to justify spending the higher price tag. Much of it could be first-party and built into the headset, such as a redesigned interface for using office and productivity tech while in office. Others could be enhanced versions of popular games, like full-body tracking being added to Beat Saber or Supernatural.
At the same time, Meta told us about its new Presence Platform for Oculus Quest, which includes better hand tracking and mixed-reality games via passthrough API. While mixed-reality and augmented-reality experiences will work better on the Quest Pro, that doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be able to use them on the Quest 2 (or even the Quest 1).
What we do know is that all of the best Oculus Quest 2 games should work on the Meta Quest 2 Pro, aka Project Cambria.
Meta Quest 2
Basic hardware, pro gaming library
Project Cambria is liable to be a huge upgrade, but it’s also likely to cost much more than the Quest 2. Millions of people have bought (and love) the Quest 2, and that will be the best fit for regular users who don’t want to use VR for professional or Metaverse contexts.
