Boasting a faster processor and more RAM power than before, the Oculus Quest 2 looked to be one of the most exciting gaming hardware additions to the shelves this year, alongside the addition of next-gen consoles and unbelievable graphics cards. We were one of the lucky few given the opportunity to put the headset to the test ahead of release following our review of the original a little earlier this year. Here's what we thought...
The most striking and quickly obvious change is in the headset's colour! Instead of the usual black, Oculus Quest 2 comes in white which gives it a clean and sleek appearance. Just make sure you don't have grubby hands before you boot it up!
Oculus Quest 2's head strap has also been fully redesigned so that it can be customised in more detail than before, adding a new layer of comfort for those who may have struggled a little with the more rigid straps of the original Quest. Now, instead of wanting to take the headset off in under an hour, I can enjoy a couple of hours and fully immerse myself within the virtual worlds I've become a part of, no discomfort distracting me and pulling me out of that envelopment.
Then there's the new Touch controllers which have been designed with ergonomics in mind. They're more comfortable than the last and were inspired by the Oculus Rift controllers, with intuitive controls that transport gestures made directly into your virtual world, delivering a stronger feeling of hand presence than ever before.
When you put the Quest 2 on for the first time, you will notice that there's a higher-resolution display. If you read our review of the original Quest, you'll have noticed we did mention that there were a number of times the screen appeared grainy, as if a film grain filter had been layered over it. That doesn't ever seem to be the case here, thanks to an increase of 50% more pixels. Clarity seemed to be key for the creators here, and they've smashed it out of the park. Oculus also promise 90Hz support is coming soon.
Quest 2 users will now also be able to step into titles that were previously reserved for Rift users, with the Oculus Link. This can be purchased separately and allows you to plug directly into a compatible gaming PC to access hundreds of further VR titles.
Along with all of these fantastic additions comes the return of some instantly-recognisable features, such as the Quest software platform that includes Guardian for spacing and hand tracking, as well as the Universal menu, all-in-one gaming library and immersive positional audio. Players can also now plug in their own headphones or earbuds using the 3.5mm headphone jack for enhanced audio.
It all seemed too good to be true, but I can say hand on heart that this is the most memorable and easy to setup virtual reality experience I've had throughout the years. You will face some internal moral problems if you've deleted your Facebook account and don't want to go back - because a Facebook account is essential if you're to play - but this is an easily-rectified issue. Just create an account and put as little of yourself into your profile as is necessary to create it.
The Oculus Quest 2 is available now in both 64GB and 256GB formats, priced at £299 and £399 respectively.
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