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Meta Quest headset owners now have an advantage over Apple Vision Pro users: they can watch spatial video recorded by virtually any iPhone.
Meta has released a v65 update for the Quest series that enables spatial video playback for any iPhone running iOS 17 or later. So long as you have an app that can record stereoscopic footage, you can watch in virtual reality.
The Apple Vision Pro had the feature beforehand, but you currently have to record using an iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max. Apple changed the camera layout on these phones to help capture 3D videos.
The update also replicates the Vision Pro’s support for panoramic photos. If you have an iPhone running iOS 17 or newer, you can upload panoramas to your Meta Quest account and view them as if you were standing in the shot.
Beyond spatial videos and panoramas, Meta upgraded passthrough video on the Quest 3 to let you stay in mixed reality the entire time. Before now, you had to sit in a “void-like” VR space when visiting the lock screen, powering off or otherwise using certain panels.
The additions reflect Meta’s effort to counter the Vision Pro and limit Apple’s potential success with an eventual mainstream Vision model. Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly argued that the Quest 3 offers much of the same functionality at a far lower $499 price.
Apple’s headset is still more powerful, with a faster chip, higher-resolution displays, and more advanced hand tracking. However, the additions of broader spatial video support and panoramas could make the Quest 3 more appealing if you balk at the thought of buying a new iPhone alongside a $3,499 Vision Pro.
