The company officially announced the Quest 3 headset Wednesday at its annual Connect developer conference, increasing the price from $200 to $500. It also announced second-generation smart glasses developed jointly with luxury sunglasses maker Ray-Ban.

Previewed by Meta earlier this year after Bloomberg published a hands-on review of the device, the Quest 3 offers improved performance over 2020’s Quest 2. It also marks the turning point from VR to mixed reality, which combines virtuality and augmentation. reality.

In addition to competitive pressures, Meta is also struggling to sell to consumers in the Metaverse, a collection of interlocking online worlds that utilize its headsets.

For now, Meta remains the leader in the headset industry, accounting for nearly half of the market, according to Counterpoint Research. However, it was a proposal that would be a loss for the company. The big question is whether mainstream consumers will ultimately accept the product.

Quest 3 is the latest attempt to expand the appeal of this technology. Headset users will be able to transition between VR and mixed reality, known as XR, with a simple double-tap on the side of the device. The wearer can use her more immersive VR options when watching movies or playing games, and transition to her XR mode when browsing the web or viewing photos. In that situation, data and images are overlaid on top of a view of the real world surrounding the user.

Quest 3 features 30% higher resolution, new lenses, and a faster chip from Qualcomm. There’s also a dual-color pass-through camera that allows users to see the world around them.

The latest headset has twice the processing power of Quest 2, allowing for better graphics rendering, smoother operation, and faster app loading speeds. It’s also thinner than the Quest 2 and adds improved speakers and a new controller.

This device is similar to the previous version, but with three sensors on the front. The left and right modules are cameras, and the central sensor is a new component to determine the location of objects and walls in the user’s room. This allows the device to automatically place virtual guardrails so users never enter the table. It can also be used in games, such as titles where you can shoot items on walls.

Meta, which has struggled to make money with VR headsets, is looking to profit from Quest 3. The company is increasing the price of its devices by 67 percent for models with 128 gigabytes of storage. The Menlo Park, California-based company also offers a $650 version with 512 gigabytes of capacity. Quest 3 will be released on October 10th.

Raising prices in the face of sluggish sales is a gamble for Meta. The company was unable to attract consumers to its $1,000 luxury model, the Quest Pro. But all products in that lineup will cost a fraction of Apple’s new Vision Pro, which is scheduled to launch in early 2024.

In addition to XR, Meta is looking forward to new software that will captivate users. The company has partnered with Microsoft to allow devices to stream games from the Xbox Cloud Gaming service.

Meta also announced the second version of its smart glasses, developed in collaboration with Luxottica Group’s Ray-Ban. The previous version wasn’t a hit, but Meta hopes to woo consumers with something more similar to regular glasses.

The latest version offers new frame options, as well as improved speakers and a better camera. Unlike the sci-fi vision of smart glasses with augmented reality that can display digital content, this product is less ambitious. It focuses on taking photos, recording videos, making calls, and listening to music.

The new model comes in two styles, Wayfarer and Headliner, and is available in standard, polarized, transitional, and prescription lenses. The $299 glasses also come in a variety of size and color options, including glossy black, matte black, and a new transparent version that reveals the electronics inside.

The new model includes a 12-megapixel camera and five microphones. This compares to the previous version’s dual 5 megapixel sensors and his three microphones.