Today we're announcing features that will begin rolling out soon in the v28 software update to Oculus Quest headsets. Oculus Air Link is a wireless way to play PC VR games on Quest 2, while new Infinite Office features make getting work done in VR even easier. We're also announcing native 120 Hz support for Quest 2 for an ultra-smooth gameplay experience.
Since launching in 2019 and exiting beta last year, Oculus Link has been a widely used feature across the Quest Platform. With a gaming PC and a compatible USB-C cable, Link has given people access to Rift's impressive content library, including games like Asgard's Wrath, Lone Echo, Stormland, and more. But of course, being tethered to your PC can break immersion and limit your mobility. We know gamers want to use Link without a wire—to experience the full freedom of movement offered by Quest 2 while playing the high-end titles that can only run on a gaming PC. That's why we've been working on a new streaming technology called Oculus Air Link—a completely wireless way to play PC VR content on Quest 2 using WiFi, built on the successful Oculus Link streaming pipeline.
Air Link
Air Link will ship in Experimental mode on Quest 2, and we're excited to hear the community's feedback while Air Link is in early development.
Air Link gives people more options for accessing PC VR games on Quest 2. Oculus Link cables will still provide a robust and consistent experience, while those with a strong WiFi setup can choose to stream wirelessly through Air Link. If you want to charge your headset during your VR exploits, experience the highest-fidelity visuals possible, or if your available WiFi network is congested or unsecured, Link via USB-C cable is the way to go. If you have a strong and secure WiFi network and if your playspace is ideally within roughly 20 feet of your WiFi router, Air Link will be a good option.
While Air Link is an Experimental feature, not every network and PC setup will be ideal. We recommend following the guidelines we've provided to ensure the best experience, including: Only use Air Link on a secure WiFi network that you trust; use a 5Ghz network on an AC or AX router, connected via ethernet cable to your PC; and make sure your PC meets the Oculus Link requirements.
Here's how to get started with Air Link once it rolls out: First, download and install the Oculus PC app if you haven't already. You'll need PC software v28, which is rolling out soon. Next, navigate to Settings → Beta in the PC app and enable the Air Link toggle. Then, put on your Quest 2 headset, navigate to Settings → Experimental, and enable Air Link. To disable Air Link and go back to using Link with a USB-C cable, you'll need to disable Air Link from the Experimental panel.
We'll work to improve Air Link over time, including performance, visual quality, and the ability to run in less than ideal wireless scenarios. We look forward to hearing the community's feedback while Air Link is in Experimental mode.
Infinite Office
At Facebook Connect, we announced Infinite Office—a collection of new features built into Oculus Home, designed to make working in VR feel more productive and flexible. In January, we rolled out the ability to find and use your Bluetooth-enabled mouse or trackpad while in VR. Today, we're announcing two more great new features in the Infinite Office suite: physical surface integration and the ability to track your physical keyboard.
Bring Your Desk Into VR
Being able to interact with parts of the real world can help you feel safe, immersed, and more comfortable in VR. Launching as an experimental feature on the Quest Platform, you'll be able to place a virtual desk on your real furniture so you can see and use it while in your Home environment. With this feature, you can use your desk as a separate seated area to access work tools like Browser. In addition to integrating with your real environment, your virtual desk boundary is automatically saved and detected, letting you easily pick things up right where you left off.
Pair Your Physical Keyboard with Your Quest 2 for Better Input
At Facebook Connect, we announced a partnership with Logitech to bring a physical keyboard into VR, beginning with the Logitech K830. Soon, you'll be able to type as effectively in VR as you do in the real world with Bluetooth-enabled keyboard tracking. With this experimental feature, you'll be able to comfortably sit at your physical desk at home, pair your Logitech K830 keyboard to your Quest 2, and view a 3D representation of your hands and keyboard within VR for easy text entry and system navigation while in your Home environment. For an optimal in-VR experience, we recommend placing the keyboard on a flat and light-colored surface in a well-lit area. We'll expand support for additional keyboards in the future.
You'll be able to enable your virtual desk and pair your keyboard via Bluetooth Pairing through the Experimental Features panel in your Settings. To use your keyboard in VR, tracking will need to be turned on, which you can do by putting on your headset, navigating to Settings → Device, and enabling the Tracking toggle.
120 Hz Support
With its increased graphics processing power and new display, Quest 2 is capable of supporting high frame rates that deliver an ultra-smooth gameplay experience. Quest 2 currently runs at 90 Hz by default in system software like the Home environment, Explore, the Store, Oculus Browser, and Oculus TV. Last year, we also opened up 90 Hz support across the entire platform, letting developers start shipping titles with native 90 Hz support on Quest 2. Many apps including Echo VR, Red Matter, Vacation Simulator, Racket: Nx, Eleven Table Tennis, and Down the Rabbit Hole have already shipped 90 Hz updates.
Now, we're giving gamers and developers even more choice to push smooth gameplay to the next level with the option to enable a 120 Hz display refresh rate on Quest 2. Developers can soon begin to ship apps on the Oculus Store that run at 120 Hz natively, while Quest 2 users will be able to opt into the 120 Hz option via a toggle in the Experimental panel to experience these applications at higher frame rates. While there aren't any apps that support 120 Hz just yet, people who turn on this setting will experience 120 Hz performance in apps that choose to support it in the future. Meanwhile, Quest 2 system software will remain at 90 Hz. Oculus Link support for 120 Hz will come in a future release.
Our goal is to continue unlocking new capabilities of the Quest 2 hardware. We expect 120 Hz and 90 Hz support to provide the most benefit for games that rely on fast-twitch, rapid-style movement while for many other apps, 72 Hz mode will continue to be a great option for a smooth and comfortable experience.
View at TechPowerUp Main Site
Since launching in 2019 and exiting beta last year, Oculus Link has been a widely used feature across the Quest Platform. With a gaming PC and a compatible USB-C cable, Link has given people access to Rift's impressive content library, including games like Asgard's Wrath, Lone Echo, Stormland, and more. But of course, being tethered to your PC can break immersion and limit your mobility. We know gamers want to use Link without a wire—to experience the full freedom of movement offered by Quest 2 while playing the high-end titles that can only run on a gaming PC. That's why we've been working on a new streaming technology called Oculus Air Link—a completely wireless way to play PC VR content on Quest 2 using WiFi, built on the successful Oculus Link streaming pipeline.
Air Link
Air Link will ship in Experimental mode on Quest 2, and we're excited to hear the community's feedback while Air Link is in early development.
Air Link gives people more options for accessing PC VR games on Quest 2. Oculus Link cables will still provide a robust and consistent experience, while those with a strong WiFi setup can choose to stream wirelessly through Air Link. If you want to charge your headset during your VR exploits, experience the highest-fidelity visuals possible, or if your available WiFi network is congested or unsecured, Link via USB-C cable is the way to go. If you have a strong and secure WiFi network and if your playspace is ideally within roughly 20 feet of your WiFi router, Air Link will be a good option.
While Air Link is an Experimental feature, not every network and PC setup will be ideal. We recommend following the guidelines we've provided to ensure the best experience, including: Only use Air Link on a secure WiFi network that you trust; use a 5Ghz network on an AC or AX router, connected via ethernet cable to your PC; and make sure your PC meets the Oculus Link requirements.
Here's how to get started with Air Link once it rolls out: First, download and install the Oculus PC app if you haven't already. You'll need PC software v28, which is rolling out soon. Next, navigate to Settings → Beta in the PC app and enable the Air Link toggle. Then, put on your Quest 2 headset, navigate to Settings → Experimental, and enable Air Link. To disable Air Link and go back to using Link with a USB-C cable, you'll need to disable Air Link from the Experimental panel.
We'll work to improve Air Link over time, including performance, visual quality, and the ability to run in less than ideal wireless scenarios. We look forward to hearing the community's feedback while Air Link is in Experimental mode.
Infinite Office
At Facebook Connect, we announced Infinite Office—a collection of new features built into Oculus Home, designed to make working in VR feel more productive and flexible. In January, we rolled out the ability to find and use your Bluetooth-enabled mouse or trackpad while in VR. Today, we're announcing two more great new features in the Infinite Office suite: physical surface integration and the ability to track your physical keyboard.
Bring Your Desk Into VR
Being able to interact with parts of the real world can help you feel safe, immersed, and more comfortable in VR. Launching as an experimental feature on the Quest Platform, you'll be able to place a virtual desk on your real furniture so you can see and use it while in your Home environment. With this feature, you can use your desk as a separate seated area to access work tools like Browser. In addition to integrating with your real environment, your virtual desk boundary is automatically saved and detected, letting you easily pick things up right where you left off.
Pair Your Physical Keyboard with Your Quest 2 for Better Input
At Facebook Connect, we announced a partnership with Logitech to bring a physical keyboard into VR, beginning with the Logitech K830. Soon, you'll be able to type as effectively in VR as you do in the real world with Bluetooth-enabled keyboard tracking. With this experimental feature, you'll be able to comfortably sit at your physical desk at home, pair your Logitech K830 keyboard to your Quest 2, and view a 3D representation of your hands and keyboard within VR for easy text entry and system navigation while in your Home environment. For an optimal in-VR experience, we recommend placing the keyboard on a flat and light-colored surface in a well-lit area. We'll expand support for additional keyboards in the future.
You'll be able to enable your virtual desk and pair your keyboard via Bluetooth Pairing through the Experimental Features panel in your Settings. To use your keyboard in VR, tracking will need to be turned on, which you can do by putting on your headset, navigating to Settings → Device, and enabling the Tracking toggle.
120 Hz Support
With its increased graphics processing power and new display, Quest 2 is capable of supporting high frame rates that deliver an ultra-smooth gameplay experience. Quest 2 currently runs at 90 Hz by default in system software like the Home environment, Explore, the Store, Oculus Browser, and Oculus TV. Last year, we also opened up 90 Hz support across the entire platform, letting developers start shipping titles with native 90 Hz support on Quest 2. Many apps including Echo VR, Red Matter, Vacation Simulator, Racket: Nx, Eleven Table Tennis, and Down the Rabbit Hole have already shipped 90 Hz updates.
Now, we're giving gamers and developers even more choice to push smooth gameplay to the next level with the option to enable a 120 Hz display refresh rate on Quest 2. Developers can soon begin to ship apps on the Oculus Store that run at 120 Hz natively, while Quest 2 users will be able to opt into the 120 Hz option via a toggle in the Experimental panel to experience these applications at higher frame rates. While there aren't any apps that support 120 Hz just yet, people who turn on this setting will experience 120 Hz performance in apps that choose to support it in the future. Meanwhile, Quest 2 system software will remain at 90 Hz. Oculus Link support for 120 Hz will come in a future release.
Our goal is to continue unlocking new capabilities of the Quest 2 hardware. We expect 120 Hz and 90 Hz support to provide the most benefit for games that rely on fast-twitch, rapid-style movement while for many other apps, 72 Hz mode will continue to be a great option for a smooth and comfortable experience.
View at TechPowerUp Main Site
