Even at a Lower Cost, It Still Made Me Uneasy

It’s been a good while since I last donned a virtual—or rather, mixed reality—headset. I have a Quest 2 at home, but it hasn’t seen much action lately since I’ve moved most of my computing to a foldable Android device. However, my experience with the Meta Quest 3S at Meta Connect got me thinking about reintroducing this kind of tech into my life. The only downside? It left me feeling a tad queasy.

Meta’s newly announced Quest 3S headset comes in at an attractive starting price of $300, which makes it a more budget-friendly option than the standard Quest 3. It operates on the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform, but there is a trade-off: a narrower field of view. While it doesn’t quite match up to its pricier counterpart in resolution, it’s definitely a step up from the Quest 2. This release seems targeted at those, like me, who’ve let their headsets gather dust but might be tempted by an upgrade. It features a vibrant mixed reality passthrough that lets you effortlessly navigate between virtuality and reality.

Initially, trying out the Meta Quest 3S felt like a return to something I’d missed. Yet, as the session went on, I was reminded of the frequent reason I shy away from these headsets—I get nauseous. Whether it was the lack of sustenance or the sweltering heat adding to my discomfort, about a half-hour into the experience, I graciously asked to pause and remove the headset for a breather.

The real kicker for my queasiness was the Horizon World’s Music Valley Experience. Featuring Sabrina Carpenter—still a youngster in my mind from her Disney Channel days—singing in the distance, the experience felt increasingly immersive. As I drew nearer to her virtual stage, it almost felt like I was trespassing into someone’s personal space—it was just too close for comfort.

At some point, another avatar joined the scene, playfully dancing alongside me, kindly guiding me around this virtual realm. Together, we approached an alien spaceship hovering nearby, releasing musical notes. Attempting to grab them with joystick controllers proved challenging, and it was during this lighthearted activity that I began to feel the unsettling churn in my stomach.

Despite this, not all was lost with the Quest 3S. I indulged in the start of a Celine Dion special on Amazon Prime, which was a delight for the ears. I found myself amidst a field of daisies in an impressive 8K, 3D YouTube video, enjoying a moment of complete serenity. I even stacked some windows, albeit haphazardly, just for fun. An attempt to play an Xbox game was thwarted by a faulty demonstration controller, but I did manage a brief stint in Just Dance—although by then, my tolerance was wearing thin.

The most intense wave of sickness hit during Horizon Worlds, lacking a reliable horizon line to stabilize like the one you might fixate on while swaying on a boat. It’s unexpected to have that reaction while comfortably seated, so that’s likely what I’ll stick to next time I venture into VR territory: staying seated. Meta has managed to trim down the costs of the Quest, but they still need to crack the code for catering to those of us with sensitive stomachs in this virtual reality and mixed reality world.

The Meta Quest 3S is available for pre-order now, starting at $300 for 128GB of storage, and going up to $400 for the 256GB version. You can get your hands on it starting October 15th.