While Inexpensive, It Still Left Me Feeling Queasy

I’ve stepped away from virtual reality for a while now, mainly sticking with my Quest 2 at home. However, as my computing habits shifted mostly to a foldable Android device, I found myself using it less. But recently, during a demo of the Meta Quest 3S at Meta Connect, I began to wonder if there’s still a place for virtual—or should I say mixed—reality in my daily life. The only downside? It still makes me a bit queasy.

Meta’s introduction of the Quest 3S headset, priced from $300, caught my interest. It’s a tad more wallet-friendly than the standard Quest 3, running on the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform. However, the cost cut comes at the expense of resolution and a slightly narrower field of view compared to the Quest 3. Interestingly, it’s a step up from the older Quest and Quest 2 models, seemingly targeting folks like me who’ve put their headsets aside but might be tempted for a refresh. It features a vibrant full-color mixed reality passthrough that allowed me to maneuver easily during my session by simply switching modes.

Initially, my reacquaintance with the Meta Quest 3S felt like reconnecting with an old cherished pastime. However, the habitual nausea that led to me avoiding these experiences quickly resurfaced. Whether due to an empty stomach or the overheated environment, about 32 minutes into the demo, I felt compelled to politely request a break and escape back to reality for a breather.

The breaking point came during my stint in Horizon Worlds’ Music Valley Experience. The scene was set with Sabrina Carpenter singing in the distance, someone I remember from her Disney Channel days. As I moved closer to her virtual “stage,” the immersion intensified to a degree that felt almost intrusive, like I was encroaching on her personal space. It turned out to be a bit too up-close-and-personal for my taste.

Things got interesting when another avatar joined and started dancing alongside me. My virtual companion was welcoming, taking me around the digital space. We ended up at a hovering alien spaceship that was dispersing music notes, and capturing them with joystick-driven claw mechanisms proved challenging. It was around this moment that my stomach started signaling its protest.

Other parts of the Quest 3S experience were smoother for me. I caught the beginning of a Celine Dion special on Amazon Prime, where she sounded fantastic. I lounged in a field of daisies through an 8K, 3D YouTube video, which had a calming effect. I shuffled around some windows and haphazardly stacked them, just for fun. An attempt to dive into an Xbox game was thwarted by a non-cooperative demo controller, although I did manage a session of Just Dance before nearing my limit.

The queasiness peaked during my Horizon Worlds venture, largely because it lacked a steady point—like a horizon one might use to stabilize themselves on a moving boat. It was surprising to reach such a state while simply sitting down. So, come next time, staying seated will likely be my go-to strategy with any headset. Meta has achieved cost efficiency with the Quest series, but there’s still work to do in crafting an experience gentle enough for sensitive stomachs like mine in both virtual and mixed realities.

The new Meta Quest 3S is available for preorder, starting at $300 for the 128GB version, with the price climbing to $400 for the 256GB model. Official sales kick off on October 15.