Oculus Quest will be updated in Nov. to be able to wire up directly to PCs, like the Rift, and in 2020 will get support for hand tracking, no controllers needed

Just before the annual VR/AR conference Oculus Connect 6, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg released a teaser video hinting …

VentureBeat 2019-09-26 Jeremy Horwitz

Context & Ripple Effects

When Oculus announced the $399 standalone Quest in 2018, its pitch was freedom from wires and PCs — touch controllers, no tether, no gaming rig required. This announcement reverses half of that pitch: Zuckerberg is promising a November update that lets the Quest act as a Rift-class wired PC headset, with controller-free hand tracking to follow in 2020, both teased just before the Oculus Connect 6 conference.

The move closes the gap Facebook had left between its two product lines: Quest owners get access to the Rift's PC game library without buying a second headset, and the CNET interview with Zuckerberg frames the updates as part of a broader push on social VR and AR groundwork. Subsequent coverage shows the bet compounding — the Link beta shipped that November over USB-C, hand-tracking titles were accepted by May 2020, and the wired mode eventually went wireless as Air Link on Quest 2 before reaching the original Quest too.

First-order effects

Quest buyers effectively get two headsets in one starting in November: a standalone device at home and a Rift-compatible PC headset when plugged in, which directly undercuts the reason to own a separate Rift.
Developers gain a controller-free input surface for 2020, expanding what kinds of apps — beyond games built around Touch controllers — can run on the platform.

Second-order effects

Rift's position as Facebook's PC VR line becomes hard to defend once its flagship library runs on the cheaper Quest, pushing the company toward a single-headset strategy.
Hand tracking opens Quest to productivity and collaboration use cases, the category Oculus itself flagged when it began accepting hand-tracking titles alongside new work apps in May 2020.

Third-order effects

Software updates rather than new hardware became the mechanism for repositioning a VR headset's capabilities — a pattern that repeated when Air Link arrived via the v28 update — shortening the distance between product generations.
If standalone headsets keep absorbing tethered features, the industry's split between mobile and PC VR consolidates around all-in-one devices, with PC rigs demoted to optional accessories.

The trend: Standalone VR headsets are absorbing PC-tethered capabilities through post-launch software, collapsing Facebook's separate mobile and desktop VR lines into one evolving device.

Discussion

@thehealy6 @thehealy6 on x
Hanging out with my VR girlfriend is going to be so much better now https://twitter.com/...
@appleidinesh Dinesh Dave on x
Im telling you. Forget the Switch. This is by far hands down the best next gen console. https://twitter.com/...
@merryh @merryh on x
HOOOOOOOLY. I'm so sorry to devs in the middle of working on Quest for this new addition hahaha but also HECK YEAH all this helps make VR far more accessible to users and that makes me do a happy dance. https://twitter.com/...
@endigoskyborn @endigoskyborn on x
So I actually tried this at a developer's studio in London a couple years ago, and this really is the real deal. This could be THE real turning point for VR. https://twitter.com/...
@chriswade__ @chriswade__ on x
This is awesome but don't expect all your games to get updates to allow this as the core interaction. Even grabbing (the interactions most obviously afforded by using your actual hands) can't be triggered accurately enough with just computer vision. https://twitter.com/...
@jason_rubin Jason Rubin on x
First time I experienced hand presence in VR through Touch controllers was nothing short of amazing (you know what I'm talking about). And now to be able to bring your own hands in VR? Absolutely mind-blowing...can't wait for everyone to experience it. https://twitter.com/...
@bertaroo Albert Millis on x
Lol Oculus made another thing that totally changes my distribution strategies for VR. Happens. Every. Year. 😂 #OC6
@urgamingtechie @urgamingtechie on x
Finally, this was sorely needed. Everything media in one place and an easily watch content with others. Awesome stuff #oculusconnect6 #oculus #oculusquest https://twitter.com/...
@jordannovet Jordan Novet on x
Facebook Q2 revenue: $16.89 billion https://twitter.com/...
@jank0 Janko Roettgers on x
“A bunch of Oculus Go apps” are coming to the Quest. Sounds like this will still be heavily curated.
@benasmith Ben Smith on x
At OC2 Oculus gave attendees a copy of Ready Player One. Today at OC6 Zuck announces a Facebook version of the Oasis... Build, share and experience virtual worlds in “Horizon” #OC6 pic.twitter.com/hu2vm41Hub
@stocksharks_ Stock Sharks on x
Launching in 2020, Facebook Horizon will allow users to design their own diverse avatars and hop between virtual locales through portals called Telepods, watch movies and consume other media with friends, and play multiplayer games together like Wing Strikers. pic.twitter.com/T6L…
@imcatnoone Cat Noone on x
I just want to know what the decision making process was around removing the person's lower extremities from the design equation. https://twitter.com/...
@thejeremyhaynes Jeremy Haynes on x
People who hate real life can officially opt for a virtual life instead there will be ways to make in game currency that can be converted to real life currency so you can be 100% in VR while avoiding your real life completely Wealth gap will drive more into these options 🕰 https:…
@mahalis Noah Witherspoon on x
didn't expect FB to make a play for being the VR Second Life so soon—it's almost compelling, if you let yourself forget it's run by Facebook https://twitter.com/...
@joshconstine Josh Constine on x
Facebook is building the Ready Player One Oasis as users tire of comparing their real lives via News Feed https://techcrunch.com/... pic.twitter.com/fdrJ4camk6
@joshconstine Josh Constine on x
Facebook will shut down Rooms & Spaces to launch its own MMO world Horizon in 2020 https://techcrunch.com/...
@alexeheath Alex Heath on x
This is Minecraft meets Ready Player One Oasis with a touch of Sim City for VR. Facebook has taken stabs at this kind of thing before but this looks like a much fuller experience. https://twitter.com/...
@joshconstine Josh Constine on x
Facebook Horizon will let you build diverse avatars, create your own places & games without code, and socialize with friends in an ideal townsquare — what Facebook wishes it was but in VR https://techcrunch.com/... tip @techmeme

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