How good is the Meta Quest 3S battery life?
Finest reply: Meta claims that the Meta Quest 3S battery life lasts 2.5 hours per cost for regular gaming. We examined our Meta Quest 3S overview unit for ourselves and located that it does final 2.5 hours in ideally suited situations, similar to commonplace gaming or streaming YouTube VR.
Nevertheless, when enjoying a graphically intense, Quest 3-enhanced sport, the Quest 3S battery life fell to 2 hours, nearer to how lengthy the Meta Quest 3 usually lasts. Closely utilizing mixed-reality passthrough, web looking, or different “productiveness” software program will burn by means of battery extra shortly as properly.
The Meta Quest 3S (4,324mAh) has a smaller capability than the Meta Quest 3 (5,060mAh), however the finances headset nonetheless lasts longer for day-to-day utilization whereas utilizing the identical Snapdragon XR2 CPU and 8GB of RAM.
It is one of many uncommon Meta Quest 3S vs. 3 variations that factors within the cheaper headset’s favor. We suspect it lasts longer as a result of the Quest 3S has a lower-resolution show and last-gen Fresnel lenses that do not require as a lot brightness because the Quest 3’s pancake lenses.
Our Quest 3S tester Nick Sutrich spent one week with the Quest 3S and will probably be publishing his full overview quickly. Having run the headset by means of a number of energy cycles, he agrees with Meta’s evaluation that the Quest 3S is extra environment friendly than the Quest 3. However he additionally discovered that when enjoying a AAA Quest sport that we will not talk about publicly but, it cancelled out the Quest 3S’ battery benefit.
For context, the Oculus Quest 2 additionally had a battery-life max of two.5 hours with a last-gen Snapdragon XR2 CPU, with the similar lenses & decision because the Quest 3S however a smaller capability (3,640mAh). Nevertheless, most of those outdated headsets have misplaced battery capability over the previous couple of years, making the Quest 3S a return to the norm.
Whereas 2–2.5 hours of playtime is sufficient for a lot of Quest players, others will discover it inadequate for lengthy, immersive play periods of the finest Meta Quest video games.
The Meta Quest v59 replace added a Battery Saver mode that units a hard and fast refresh price (72Hz), brightness (50% of max), and diminished foveated rendering. Yow will discover it within the full settings menu underneath Energy if you should stretch your restricted Quest 3S battery life in a pinch.
This can be a short-term compromise, not a long-term resolution. If battery life is an everyday subject, we advocate shopping for a substitute head strap with a built-in battery pack. Meta sells an official one for a expensive $130.
Among the many finest Third-party Quest 3S equipment, our favourite is the BOBOVR M3 Professional, which prices considerably much less. It is an enormous consolation improve over the default Quest 3S fabric strap and provides one other 5,200mAh of battery capability, greater than the Quest 3S itself has. It’s going to add one other couple hours of playtime to the headset. It even has a quick-swap battery design, so in the event you pay further for a second battery you may maintain it charged and swap it in when the primary battery dies.
You most likely do not want the full 4–7 hours of playtime it doubtlessly presents, however it offers you a buffer in case you overlook to maintain your Quest 3S charged and do not need to wait two hours to begin.
2.5 hours of wi-fi gaming
The Meta Quest 3S makes use of the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 and 4MP RGB cameras, enabling enhanced video games and mixed-reality experiences that the Quest 2 cannot deal with. With its $299 price ticket, it saves you cash which you can put in the direction of a battery pack, letting you prolong your Meta Quest 3S battery life one other couple of hours.
Stretch out the enjoyable
The BOBOVR M3 Professional is the primary Quest 3S accent we advocate shopping for as a result of it cushions your head and retains the front-heavy headset securely in place with an adjustable knob as you dance or bob round your front room. As an added bonus, it doubles your Quest 3S battery capability, and the battery itself sits on the rear, counterbalancing the load.
