This blog post was originally published at Qualcomm’s website. It is reprinted here with the permission of Qualcomm.
In a Nutshell:
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Snapdragon XR Platforms power the latest commercial augmented, virtual and mixed reality devices from Meta including the just announced Quest 3S.
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Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and Meta continue their strong collaboration and are powering XR devices including the Meta Quest 3 and Ray-Ban Meta glasses.
For over a decade, Qualcomm Technologies has helped moved the spatial computing revolution forward. Extended Reality (XR) has the power to transform industries, from healthcare and education to manufacturing and entertainment. We are excited to be at the forefront of this transformation, working closely with industry leaders like Meta to create powerful and accessible XR devices that will revolutionize the way we interact with the digital world.
Meta Quest 3S powered by Snapdragon
At the Connect 2024 event this week, Meta launched the Meta Quest 3S powered by the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 Platform. This latest addition to the Quest 3 family of devices brings vibrant, full-color mixed reality experiences to an even wider audience with an incredible price point. The Quest 3S is powered by the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform as the Quest 3, bringing the same improvements in GPU, artificial intelligence (AI) and battery life to this new, more affordable Quest device, all while supporting the complete library of games and applications from Meta. Launching October 15, 2024, at $299 USD — the Meta Quest 3S further realizes our shared vision to make XR accessible to all.
Qualcomm Technologies and Meta: growing the XR ecosystem
At Qualcomm Technologies, we are dedicated to making XR a reality for everyone. We have developed multiple generations of purpose-built platforms to help make immersive technology more accessible and bring it to a wider audience. We not only create the processors, but also have pioneered the underlying perception technologies like hand tracking, head tracking and plane detection that make spatial computing experiences possible. We are also working closely with companies like Meta to help shape the future of XR experiences.
The two companies have collaborated for years to elevate virtual reality and mixed reality to new heights of power, accessibility and immersion. The collaboration started in 2013 when Oculus Rift redefined what immersive VR could be.
Since then, Qualcomm Technologies and Meta have been working together to craft the next levels of virtual and mixed reality, as well as AI powered smart glasses.
Looking ahead: AI smart glasses
Last year Meta introduced the latest generation of Ray-Ban Meta glasses powered by the Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 Platform. Since launch, the glasses have continued to get better with new Meta AI capabilities (in U.S. and Canada). You can ask about what you’re looking at to translate a sign in another language or ask about landmarks when exploring a new city, and soon will be able to translate live conversations in real-time — all hands-free. This same Meta AI experience is in testing on Meta Quest devices in the U.S. — allowing you to ask questions about your physical surroundings while using pass-through mode on the headset. We believe that the best way to interact with generative AI assistants is through XR — and we are thrilled that Snapdragon is powering this amazing new experience on the latest Meta devices.
Ziad Asghar
SVP & GM, XR, Qualcomm Technologies