Can you employ wi-fi or Bluetooth headphones with the Meta Quest 3?
The Quest 3 helps Bluetooth 5.2, meant to attach you to wi-fi mice and keyboards for utilizing the in-headset browser or sport controllers as a substitute for Contact controllers. You can even technically join Bluetooth headphones the identical manner: put them in pairing mode, then go to the Quest 3 Settings web page > Gadgets > Bluetooth and choose your headphones, assuming the headset can discover them. Nevertheless, be warned that the latency is actually terrible.
Simply because you should use Quest 3 Bluetooth headphones on this manner does not imply you need to, nevertheless. Anybody who tries will discover a painful latency between video and audio, ruining your immersion. We do not advocate it.
As an alternative, your best choice is to attach a brief 3.5mm cable between your Bluetooth headphones and the headset’s designated port, even when this implies they’re now not “wi-fi.”
If you wish to use wi-fi earbuds, you will want a wi-fi dongle related to the USB-C port. Soundcore by Anker earbuds are your finest wager — based mostly on each Meta’s suggestion and our personal testing — as a result of (amongst different causes) they use the USB-C port however nonetheless can help you plug in a battery pack.
Simply because you should use Quest 3 Bluetooth headphones does not imply you need to due to latency between video and audio.
The Meta Quest 3 has built-in audio system that get 40% louder than the Quest 2 did, offering wealthy sport audio. You may hardly ever want to show the amount up above the center vary to get clear, immersive sound; actually, you are liable to get some audio bleed when you go any increased.
With headphones or earbuds, you get the very best spatial sound and keep away from annoying your roommates or relations by forcing them to listen to no matter you are enjoying.
However as we have already stated, Bluetooth headphones do not work correctly on the Quest 3; Meta hasn’t made low-latency Bluetooth a precedence as a result of you’ll be able to all the time plug headphones into the three.5mm jack and tie or velcro the twine to the Quest 3’s high material strap in order that it does not dangle throughout gameplay.
In the event you’re actually invested in making your wi-fi Bluetooth earbuds work with the Quest 3, then purchase a wi-fi adapter with aptX Low Latency assist which you could plug into the Quest 3’s USB-C port; it is the one solution to interpret the sign rapidly sufficient to keep away from lag between sport audio and video.
Sadly, this resolution additionally ensures you’ll be able to’t plug a battery pack into the USB-C port concurrently, so you will have to decide on one or the opposite. We all know of Bluetooth receivers just like the Anker Soundsync A3352 that plug right into a 3.5mm jack as a substitute — bypassing the USB-C problem — however we’ve not examined this selection for ourselves.
In the event you’re prepared to purchase new wi-fi earbuds, look into the Soundcore VR P10, our favourite Quest 2 earbuds that additionally work completely effectively with the Quest 3.
They plug into the Quest’s USB-C port and work over 2.4GHz wi-fi, supplying you with low-latency audio (beneath 30ms) for the Quest 3, PC, PS5, or another console with an identical port. They’re additionally IPX4 sweat-resistant for Quest train apps and supply 6 hours of playtime per cost. Our tester says that they’ve “deep bass, nice readability, and general sound high quality that is higher than most earbuds on this worth vary.”
Most significantly, the dongle affords passthrough charging, which means it plugs into the Quest 3 port however has its personal USB-C port to plug in your battery pack of alternative.
The VR P10 earbuds additionally present Bluetooth connectivity with a “Twin Connection” mode, so you’ll be able to keep related to your smartphone whereas gaming; if somebody calls you, you’ll be able to reply the decision and have the audio routinely converted from the Quest 3. For the reason that Quest 3 has full-color passthrough, it’s going to be pretty straightforward to see who’s calling and resolve whether or not to reply.
Meta now sells “Soundcore by Anker Wi-fi VR Earbuds” which can be official “Made by Meta” equipment to the Quest 3, however they seem to have the identical 11mm drivers, LC3 Bluetooth codec, and passthrough-supporting dongle because the P10 mannequin for a barely increased worth. You possibly can in all probability save a couple of {dollars} with the P10 with none discernable distinction.
Regardless of the entire variations between the Quest 3 and Quest 2, it is good that your outdated earbuds or headphones ought to carry over to the brand new headset. Many different Quest 2 equipment like straps, face covers, and controller straps will not work on the Quest 3.
Made for Quest
The Quest 3 does not work correctly with Bluetooth headphones, so depend on a 2.4GHz low-latency wi-fi connection as a substitute. These earbuds provide you with high-quality sound for his or her dimension, do not add to the load of the Quest 3 as headphones do, and guarantee you’ll be able to increase the headset’s battery life if it’s good to.
