The annual developer conference, Meta Connect 2024, included a number of cutting-edge advances in virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence. Major announcements from the event included the low-cost Meta Quest 3S VR headset, the prototype Orion AR glasses, and important breakthroughs in AI across all of Meta’s platforms, as covered by CNET and ZDNet.
Launch Of Meta Quest 3S
At Meta Connect 2024, the more reasonably priced Meta Quest 3S virtual reality headset was formally introduced. With a starting price of $299 and a 256GB option available for $399, the Quest 3S seeks to increase the accessibility of VR technology for a wider range of users. Positioned as a substitute for the defunct Meta Quest 2, this new headset offers better features and performance at a competitive price.
Among the Quest 3S’s main characteristics are:
Enhanced performance thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 processor
Enhanced refresh rate and resolution of the display
Conformance with the current Quest content library
Support for color passthrough cameras in mixed reality scenarios
The Quest 3S’s release shows Meta’s dedication to growing its virtual reality ecosystem, bringing immersive technologies to a wider audience, and successfully competing with other tech behemoths in the quickly changing VR market.
Orion AR Goggles Model
Code-named “Orion,” Meta revealed their most sophisticated augmented reality glasses prototype at Connect 2024. Instead than depending on pass-through video, these glasses use holographic technology to overlay digital content directly onto the user’s field of view. Among the Orion prototype’s salient features are:
Wide field-of-view, full-color holographic display
Neural interface based on the wrist for intuitive control
Hand gesture recognition, eye tracking, and voice commands
The capacity to show informational holograms, video calls, and texts
The Orion glasses, which aspire to seamlessly merge digital and physical realities, symbolize Meta’s vision for the future of augmented reality, even if they are still under development and not yet ready for general release. “The most advanced glasses the world has ever seen,” as Mark Zuckerberg put it, have the ability to completely change the way we engage with digital information on a daily basis.
Voice Interactions Using Meta AI
Significant improvements to voice interaction were made to Meta’s AI assistant on all of its platforms, which include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. The business thinks speech will eventually overtake text as the most common form of AI contact since it is a more natural way to communicate with AI. With the addition of celebrity voices like Kristen Bell, John Cena, and Awkwafina, Meta AI now enables users to have conversations with it that are authentic and human-like.
Among the voice AI update’s primary features are:
Natural language processing, which does not require saying “Hey Meta” prior to every prompt
Interrupting and conversing with the AI in a natural way
Integration for easy access across all of Meta’s main apps
An automatic dubbing tool that syncs lip movements and mimics the original speaker’s voice is available for Facebook and Instagram Reels.
These developments put Meta’s AI capabilities in a competitive position relative to other large tech firms, improving accessibility and user engagement throughout all of its platforms.
Improvements For Mixed Reality
Significant developments in mixed reality technology were on display at Meta Connect 2024, improving the way that virtual and augmented reality experiences are integrated throughout Meta’s platforms. The goal of these enhancements is to provide users with more adaptable and engaging experiences.
Major improvements to mixed reality that were revealed at the event include:
Increased content availability for Quest devices, enabling users to run PC remote desktop applications, 2D mobile apps, and completely immersive experiences on a single device
The capability to launch and arrange several virtual screens inside the user’s surroundings
Redesigned social media apps, such as fresh Facebook and Instagram experiences, are geared for mixed reality.
Enhanced remote desktop features that make connecting to Windows 11 PCs simple
Introduction of “hyper scape,” a photorealistic area that lets users enter shared scanned settings or scan and construct rooms.
Improved hand and eye tracking to make user interface interactions more natural
Incorporating AI-powered features into mixed reality experiences, such as multimodal interactions and real-time language translation
These improvements show Meta’s dedication to achieving a smooth transition between the real and virtual worlds, putting the business at the forefront of mixed reality innovation.