The Meta Quest Pro didn’t quite make the splash in the prosumer market that many expected, causing the company to halt production on its first mixed reality headset just over two years after it debuted. Now, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reveals that Meta isn’t just focusing on a Quest 3 as a follow-up for consumers; they’re also planning a “high-end” model that could step in where the Quest Pro left off.
In Gurman’s latest newsletter, he covers various developments in the XR world—including Meta’s potential plans for a display in the next Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses and news about Apple slowing down the production of its Vision Pro due to waning interest in the $3,500 device.
Bringing insider information to light, Gurman mentions that Meta is actively developing both Quest 4 VR goggles and a new premium model that might eventually take up the mantle from the Quest Pro.
Back in late 2022, Quest Pro made a sharp turn away from Meta’s lineup of standalone consumer headsets, which were typically priced around $300.
A photo by Road to VR shows the Meta Quest Pro in all its glory.
At launch, the ‘Pro’ version cost $1,500 and boasted impressive features like color-passthrough, pancake lenses, and sophisticated face and eye-tracking technologies. However, less than half a year later, Meta cut the Quest Pro’s price down to $1,000 to broaden its appeal among prosumers.
Come July 2023, a report from The Information claimed that Meta was pulling the plug on the Quest Pro entirely. Yet, Meta’s CTO and head of Reality Labs, Andrew Bosworth, was quick to respond, advising not to take everything circulating as fact.
Fast forward to July 2024, The Information released another report suggesting that Meta was pivoting its ‘Pro’ energy toward a new lightweight mixed reality gadget, akin to “a bulky pair of glasses,” with the code name ‘Puffin’—and aiming for a launch in 2027. Alongside, Meta aims to release AR glasses by 2030, models said to function like its Orion AR glasses prototype.
Not long after, The Information provided another update revealing that a Quest Pro 2 prototype, named ‘La Jolla’, had been put on hold. Bosworth later verified that La Jolla was indeed canceled and confirmed Meta’s shift to developing Puffin, though he left unclear whether the Quest Pro line was ending for good.
Meta’s method of continuously circling around product development, as Bosworth describes, is about valuing exploration beyond immediate market hits. The exact status of projects like Quest Pro 2 remains hazy, making it tricky to discern if these pauses and pivots are part of a strategic progression or if they mark the ends of certain paths.
As for the rumors about the Quest Pro line being entirely scrapped, Bosworth emphasized there might be a Quest Pro 2—or there might not. His advice? Stay skeptical about the news on what’s been supposedly halted or what’s starting up.
