Whereas most tethered headsets require the use of an external sensor, or two, in order to track the headset and controllers movements within 3D space, the Oculus Quest 2 is a self-contained unit capable of tracking controller, hand, and headset movement without further kit, as did its predecessor. Not much has changed with the Quest 2, but there was already a lot to love about the Quest's tracking.

One such great (and relatively new) feature carried over from the Quest is hand tracking. The Quest 2 not only tracks the included twin Oculus Touch controllers, which are a decent iteration of the controllers once included with the original Rift, but also your mitts. You have a limited range of control—move and pinch—yet it makes for a quick and easy setup every time you put the headset on, which is often a barrier for those of us without the luxury of a permanent space for VR.

I've been hesitant to rely on tracking solutions without external sensors in the past, just because it's not been quite up to par with the base stations first included with the Vive, its subsequent iterations, and Valve Index.

Yet the Oculus Quest 2's tracking is surprisingly accurate, even when I have been at my most dexterous (read: flailing wildly). Even base stations aren't a flawless solution, especially not those included with the original Rift, and the inside-out tracking on the Quest 2 manages to keep up exceptionally well, and without fear of falling out of eyeline with the sensors.

It's pretty freeing, in all honesty. I can go from gaming on my PC to gaming in VR in a couple of minutes, and that's including time spent taking the Quest 2 out of the box.


Which all gets you into games faster. And there's a wide gamut of games available for the Quest, some optimised for the Quest 2 and others not, at least not yet. Updates are coming for some titles that don't yet support the newer headset.

The standalone experience is admittedly still hampered by the low-power silicon, and there's no getting around that. The Quest 2 not only deals with the processing onboard, but it's also trying to conserve battery power to ensure a half-decent run. That's roughly around two hours of battery life for gaming, and a little more for less intensive applications, such as YouTube VR or Netflix. The controllers also last an exceptionally long time, and despite testing this headset for a few weeks, I'm yet to run them flat off of a single AA battery. Impressive.

The low-rent rendering is noticeable in games such as Arizona Sunshine, which I've played enough times on tethered kit to notice the significant difference in graphics quality between versions. The Quest 2 has that little more power, and Arizona Sunshine is one such game updated to put it to good use, but it still leaves you with that 90s arcade-y quality that you don't quite get as often with headsets harnessing the power of discrete graphics.

That's not to say the experience is functionality poor by comparison. Don't tell anyone, but graphics aren't everything, and especially not in VR. It's the consistency of the frame times and smoothness of the experience that really counts for a lot. The Quest 2 offers plenty of each, and will soon offer more once content begins supporting its panel's native 90Hz refresh rate—at the moment it's limited to 72Hz.

The same goes for 90Hz over Oculus Link, which is not yet supported but is incoming. Fingers crossed that's soon, too. Star Wars: Squadrons is crying out for a faster refresh rate.

And that brings us nicely onto why I believe the Quest 2 is a great fit for PC VR despite its standalone credentials. Oculus Link requires just a single USB Type-C cable run from your headset to PC, and allows you to stream across your favourite compatible games, including those from the Oculus app and SteamVR compatible games. Half-Life: Alyx, here we come.

I've been exploring the maze of broken, zombie-infested buildings littering City 17's border through Oculus Link on the Quest 2, and it's been a relatively painless experience. The Oculus controllers are near-enough perfectly mapped for the game, and only in the loading screens did I ever experience any sluggish performance. The Index may be the ideal Half-Life: Alyx machine, but the game doesn't feel worse for wear on the cheaper Quest 2.

And that's why I really rate the Quest 2 as an entryway into virtual reality. That's been the bane of VR's adoption for a while, and standalone headsets have done a lot to bolster sales. Tacking on the ability to turn your standalone VR headset into a great tethered device to make the most of your PC is a masterstroke, and adds tremendous value to the overall package.


It's not entirely a headset without fault, I'll admit. The strap reminds me of the original Vive's, in that it either puts far too much pressure on your face or feels insecure on your head, and it costs $49 for the more stable Quest 2 Elite Strap. At least it's a light headset at 503g. There's also the case of the $89 Link Cable, which I've been using for the most part. It's great at 5 metres in length, and it works splendidly, but it's $89.

Facebook recommended an alternative to me that was just $18, however, a decent Type-A to Type-C cable. So don't be afraid to try out something cheaper. I ran Squadrons just fine on a very worse-for-wear USB Type-C to Type-A cable from a generic brand.

The Oculus Quest 2 delivers so much in a compact, easy-to-use, and affordable package that it's hard to argue with the faults or the fact that a lot of the ideal kit is an optional extra—Facebook login excluded, you can definitely argue that one. There have been some compromises on the Quest 2 package, but they seem well thought out and leave the door open to further upgrades once you've tried VR out. And it's a great device to recommend for people to try VR out—it opens the door to a lot of games that would be tricky, expensive, or fiddly to experience at home otherwise.

Simply put: the Oculus Quest 2 is the best entry-level VR headset right now.