Oculus Quest 2 "Accidentally" Leaked by Facebook

Written by Limarc | Published 2020/09/14
Tech Story Tags: vr | virtual-reality | oculus | oculus-quest | oculus-quest-2 | videogames | video-game-development | hackernoon-top-story

TLDR Oculus Quest 2 "Accidentally" Leaked by Facebook. Promotional videos were saved and uploaded immediately by journalists and Youtubers before Facebook took them down. Here, we will list the most important features and everything we know about the Oculus Quest. The Quest 2 will feature a Snapdragon XR2 processor, which is an incredible upgrade compared to the Snapdragon 835 in the original Oculus Quest. This gives the portable VR system that is the Quest, PC-level graphics. This will without a doubt be one of the biggest game changes in the history of the VR industry in the last decade.via the TL;DR App

In a surprise development, the specs and information of the much anticipated Oculus Quest 2 was reportedly "accidentally leaked" by Facebook. Luckily, the leaked promo videos were saved and uploaded immediately by numerous journalists and Youtubers, before Facebook took them down. Here, we will list the most important features and everything we know about the Oculus Quest 2.

Snapdragon Processor

In the video, it was confirmed that the Oculus Quest 2 will feature a Snapdragon XR2 processor, which is an incredible upgrade compared to the Snapdragon 835 in the original Oculus Quest. The difference in performance is best illustrated in a screenshot from BMF's Youtube video:
While all of performance gains are huge, one of the most notable is the native resolution per eye, which boasts a 6x better resolution per eye. Essentially, this gives the portable VR system that is the Quest, PC-level graphics. This will without a doubt, be one of the biggest game changes in the history of the VR industry in the last decade.
PC-level graphics on a wireless headset is one of the milestones we need to push the industry forward and soon it will be coming on the Oculus Quest 2.
The Quest 2 will also feature 6 GB or RAM.

256 GB of Storage

The current Quest models have a 64 GB version (which for me was more than enough storage) and 128 GB version. It is rarely the case where someone has 64 gb of games that they play regularly. However, with the Oculus Quest 2, the promo video announced that an optional 256 GB of storage will be available.
Therefore, there will also likely be a smaller storage option in a cheaper version of the headset.

Cross-platform Library from Oculus Quest

"All the Quest titles work on Quest 2," said the Facebook spokesperson in the promo video. They did not mention However, if new games made for Oculus Quest 2 would work on the original system.
Oculus Link will of course also be available on Oculus Quest 2.

Upgraded Controllers

While we didn't get any specifics, the promo videos told us that the controllers have been improved for better ergonomics.

Final Thoughts

Whether or not this leak was truly accidental is up for debate. However, it has surely captured the attention of the VR community and VR media as well. "Accidental" leaks are often a smart marketing ploy in order to get greater media coverage. If that is the case here, then Facebook got us all hook, line, and sinker.
No complaints here though. I can speak for most of the Oculus Quest community when I say that we've been waiting for this news a long time. Now, the only thing we need to know is the release date. Hopefully somebody from Facebook "accidentally" leaks that as well.
Lead image via Upload VR

Written by Limarc | Hacker Noon's VP of Editorial by day, VR Gamer and Anime Binger by night.
Published by HackerNoon on 2020/09/14