Meta Quest 2 Won’t Easily Stream to TVs Anymore, But at Least It's Half the Price Now

In an effort to refocus on its Metaverse goals, Meta is selling its refurbished Quest 2 headsets for half the price of the newest Quest 3 model. For an additional $50, buyers can upgrade to the 256 GB model of the Quest 2. However, recent changes have put a damper on the experience, with the company quietly removing the option to stream to Chromecast devices. Users can still cast to phones or computers, but will need to do so before projecting it on their TV. This change remains unexplained by Meta and is impacting all Quest headsets, inconveniencing many who relied on Chromecast for display.

Additionally, the company's digital page now states that Chromecast is not fully compatible with Meta Quest, despite not providing an official explanation for the change. Meta's Quest 2, due to its wireless nature and budget-friendly price, was initially intended to overtake the VR market. However, its pricing strategy appeared flawed when the cost of Quest 2 units fell $100 in 2022.

Last year, another model that failed to reach the same level of success as the Quest 2 was removed from the lineup. Recently, however, Meta has been more transparent about its software offerings. Every month it releases new games, akin to Game Pass – albeit with a limited selection.

Meta holds the view that its Quest 2 headset is the "most affordable way to get into VR," and it certainly offers good value for basic VR gaming. However, it lacks AR capabilities, a key feature in upcoming headset releases, including the highly-anticipated Apple's "spatial computer".

The latter's release seems to have spurred Meta to get ahead of the competition, even though a Quest 2 now costs significantly less than Apple's product. The VR wars of 2024 could potentially see a significant shift, despite low initial shipment numbers for Apple's headset as per industry analyst Ming Chi Kuo.