Facebook unveils upgraded wireless Oculus headset

San José : Facebook on Wednesday unveiled an upgraded Oculus virtual reality headset with power to handle the intensive graphics of digital worlds in a wire-free experience. The new Oculus Quest headset showcased at the Facebook unit’s developer conference is being aimed at gamers seeking immersion in virtual worlds, with other potential applications likely in the future.

“This is the wireless virtual reality experience we have been waiting for,” Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said as he unveiled the new hardware and reaffirmed Facebook’s commitment to virtual reality. The standalone VR headset boasting the same quality experiences as the Oculus Rift but without wires will hit the market early next year at a price of $399.

Oculus vice president Hugo Barra said Quest combined the capabilities of Rift and the portability of Go, the current headgear in the company’s lineup, with a strong focus on games. Rift was the first VR gear released by Facebook-owned Oculus, but needs to be plugged into computers powerful enough to handle the graphics rich, immersive nature of digital worlds. Go is a lightweight portable headset for virtual reality.