Meta Quest 3 is great for gaming and adds a new twist to many Quest 3 mixed reality games by allowing you to see real environments. This versatile VR headset can also run apps, so you can use it much like a Chromebook or phone.
From browsing the Internet, watching movies (2D and 3D), traveling virtually, and immersing yourself in 3D worlds to working with spreadsheets, creating documents, and creating 3D models, Meta’s Quest 3 is a spatial computer that does You can quickly find out if it is possible.
Web browsing in 3D
One of the best apps for the Quest 3 is the Meta web browser. It may seem counterintuitive, but think about how much time you spend in the browser on your phone or computer. It’s your gateway to the Internet and global information and apps.
When you open your browser, popular websites are listed with just one click or hand tracking. Below that, Meta highlights some web apps that offer immersive experiences. These are usually free games that load quickly and can be played for a while without downloading.
Of course, you can also go to your own website and browse. The default search engine is Google, but you can choose Bing, Yahoo DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia if you prefer. The browser is based on Chromium and will work with most websites, with some limitations.
Sign in to popular social media and video streaming services to browse your feeds and watch movies. Use a large virtual tablet with hand tracking and a touch interface, or turn it into a controller to control up to three resizable screens. You can make your screen larger than your TV, or you can create a bank of monitors that can be scaled down and viewed side-by-side. -side.
Digital Trends and your other favorite websites load instantly to keep you up to date with the latest news and articles that interest you. You can open Stackedit.io or another online text editor to take notes and save links to use on your phone or computer. Cloud storage allows you to move files between devices.
It’s a pretty decent browser. Popular design tools like Figma, Canva, and Pixlr also work. However, some web apps such as Microsoft Word and Google Docs do not work properly on Quest 3.
movie experience
The Quest 3 app takes advantage of unlimited screen space to envelop your audience and create a movie theater or home cinema-like experience without the need for a big room, giant screen, or surround sound speaker system. create.
Mixed reality is good enough on the Quest 3 that some people wear headsets and watch videos in their browser while doing housework or multitasking that doesn’t require their full attention. .
To change your mood, try lying down while watching a movie. In some cases, you can also tilt the view so that the screen floats above your head. Meta includes the Quest TV app for viewing videos, including 360-degree and 3D content. Quest TV lets you watch concerts, comedies, documentaries, and more for free.
To watch your favorite series and movies, you need to sign in to your streaming account. Services like YouTube, Disney+, Apple TV+, and Amazon Prime Video work with MetaBrowser, but not all of them do. Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have Quest apps, but they haven’t been updated recently and the quality settings are lower than expected.
There are several ways to work around this problem. Bigscreen Beta is a free VR app that lets you choose from a variety of environments where you can watch videos with your friends in the form of an avatar. This app supports Twitch, PlutoTV, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video. You may need to connect Bigscreen Beta to your Windows PC to use Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services.
Working out indoors
Working out in VR feels like playing a game, but it’s a serious workout. Fast-action games like Beat Saber can get you sweating, but dedicated fitness apps go further and track things like your heart rate and the time you spend exercising.
Supernatural is one of my favorite exercise apps, with real videos from coaches to guide you, a large library of popular songs to keep you moving, and beautiful 360-degree scenes from around the world. The feeling of being in nature and attacking and dodging targets to the tune of your favorite songs is a powerful inspiration for your workout.
FitXR and Les Mills BodyCombat are also very good, offering more diverse options and mixed reality modes that take advantage of the Quest 3’s color pass-through camera.
virtual sports
You can play soccer, basketball, tennis, and racing as esports, but playing in VR feels more authentic because you get stereoscopic vision, a 360-degree view of the action, and the ability to physically move and interact. . I’ve only scratched the surface of virtual sports, but you can put a full-fledged ping pong table in your tiny bedroom with Eleven Table Tennis, learn full-court racket work with Pickleball One, and hone your rowing skills with Marine Verse’s Kayak. I’m enjoying it.
Additionally, NFL Pro Era II, an NFL-licensed VR multiplayer app, lets you play as the quarterback of your favorite team in a variety of stadiums and weather conditions. Gym Class is a basketball simulator where you can play pickup street games or build a team to play on an NBA-licensed court.
even more apps
That’s just the beginning. There are many other apps available that may suit your needs. There are hundreds of titles in the Meta Quest store. You can also sideload Android apps using SideQuest and connect wirelessly to your Windows PC or Mac via Immersed. With so many options, there is always a solution.
Check out more of the great Quest 3 Mixed Reality apps and games I love using the new Meta Quest 3.
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