Meta Quest 3S VR Headset Discounted to $297

Discounted to $297">

The Meta Quest 3S VR headset with 128GB of storage is $296.79, about $53 off, at Amazon. This is Meta's entry-level VR headset, which launched in 2024 for $299.99 before getting a price increase to $349.99 this year. So it's not exactly the most exciting deal, but it's about as good as you're likely to find these days for a new unit.

The base model Quest blends a bit of the higher-end Quest 3 and older Quest 2 for a Goldilocks-style compromise. Like other Quests, it's a standalone unit that operates wirelessly until it's time to charge it. It plays a wide selection of games from the Quest store, like Batman: Arkham Shadow and Supernatural, and if you don't mind some added latency, you can wirelessly stream Steam games from your PC.

While the much pricier Quest 3 uses lighter, flatter pancake lenses for its optics, the 3S uses fresnel lenses like the Quest 2 generation. But other than that, it's got many similarities to the $600 Quest 3: the same Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 processor, the same cameras with color passthrough video, and the same controllers. What you pay much more for in the Quest 3 is higher image quality, thanks in part to those refined optics and a higher resolution per eye.

But the Quest 3S still looks fine with its 1832 x 1920 pixels per eye. It's a shame we're no longer seeing the previous kinds of low prices the Quest 3S used to fall to, like when it was $249 around Black Friday, but with the way things are going this is as good as it gets for now. Why this matters: The Meta Quest 3S's discounted price could make it a more attractive option for consumers looking to enter the VR market.

With its similarities to the more expensive Quest 3, the 3S offers a more affordable way to experience VR, albeit with some compromises on image quality. This deal may appeal to developers and businesses looking to test VR experiences without breaking the bank. However, the VR market is still evolving, and it's unclear how Meta's headset will perform in the long term.

Will this discount be enough to drive adoption, or will consumers hold out for even better deals or more advanced technology? Only time will tell.