So, here we are again.
You’d think after my experiences with the RayNeo X2 AR glasses, which left me more convinced we are heading toward a future of Black Mirror reruns than a utopian Jetsons world, I would have learned my lesson. And then there were the Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, which didn’t have AR either but somehow managed to be cool and actually useful.
But nooo.
Like a tech junkie looking for my next fix, I decided to do it again.
And this time, I dove headfirst into a whole week of work using the Meta Quest 3 and the Immersed app.
That’s right, I swapped out my regular setup for a Virtual Reality office. It was as immersive and strange as it sounds, and yes, there was a lot of trial, error, and mild panic (you’ll understand once we get to the setup part).
This blog is going to be a ride through the virtual office space, complete with multiple floating screens, a bit of eye strain, and some surprisingly good hand tracking.
And I am not holding back.
Before we start!
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Immersed in VR
The ultimate workspace transformation
Here’s the thing, I am no stranger to trying out the latest tech in hopes that it will revolutionize the way I work.
So when I came across Immersed, an app that turns your Meta Quest 3 into a multi-screen virtual workspace, I had to give it a shot. Why have just one boring old monitor when you can have an entire café full of virtual screens?
Immersed is a true coworker who never stops bragging about their productivity hacks. Immersed is all about giving you the ability to create multiple screens in a fully customizable VR environment, from cozy cafés to futuristic office spaces.
The screens are endless.
And the promise is that you will be more productive than ever, switching between your five virtual desktops as you sip coffee at your holographic table.
Now, don’t get me wrong; Immersed is pretty cool, but it is definitely not without its quirks. I was instantly hooked on the idea of leaving behind the physical constraints of my desk, but VR has its own set of limitations.
First off, virtual environments are great for making you feel like you are working in a trendy tech startup or a cyberpunk novel, but no amount of virtual décor can fully replace the actual comfort of a good chair (something I learned the hard way by Day 2).
Also, unless you’re a blind-typing pro, get ready to squint at your keyboard.
Real-world experience
The Pros and Cons of Full-Time VR Work
Let’s talk real-life experience for a minute.
If you have ever spent more than four hours in a VR headset, you know the discomfort is real.
Meta Quest 3 made some improvements over its predecessors, but wearing a headset for an entire workday? That’s a different beast altogether.
Setup and learning curve: Now, if you thought setting up a regular office was a nightmare, imagine trying to do that in VR. I wish I could say I gracefully transitioned into my new virtual workspace, but the reality was far more, uh, chaotic. The Quest 3’s setup process is, in a word, frustrating. It took longer than I care to admit to get everything working smoothly.
It reminded me of building IKEA furniture but with a VR headset strapped to my face.
Comfort and errrrgonomics: Once I finally got everything running, the Quest 3 was… tolerable for long hours, but not great. The headset is lighter than its predecessors, but even with improvements in padding and design, after a few hours, I started to feel like I was getting a VR facelift.
And what about the inevitable face marks.
If you plan on leaving the house after a VR session, give yourself some buffer time for those goggle imprints to fade away.
Eye strain and breaks: After a while, my eyes started to feel the strain, especially when switching between the real and virtual worlds. Immersed offers a pretty solid experience in terms of screen clarity, but even with the improved resolution of the Quest 3, it’s not quite the same as looking at a high-resolution monitor. You get used to it, but I found myself needing more breaks than usual.
Passthrough, Hand Tracking, and Visual Clarity
Passthrough Tech: Here is where Meta Quest 3 really shines; its passthrough mode.
For those unfamiliar, passthrough lets you see the real world through the headset’s cameras, so you’re not entirely blind to your physical surroundings. It is the VR equivalent of glancing over your glasses to check your phone.
In practice, it is a lifesaver though.
Especially when you need to grab something on your desk without taking off the headset. The clarity in the Quest 3’s passthrough is leaps and bounds ahead of the older models. You can actually make out what’s on your desk without feeling like you’re peering through a screen door.
Hand Tracking and Interaction: The hand tracking in the Quest 3 is miles better than the Quest 2 or Pro. I found myself comfortably navigating through my virtual desktops without reaching for the controllers. It is not perfect, but I could confidently say goodbye to my mouse and keyboard for most tasks. Typing, on the other hand, was still a challenge. If you’re not a touch-typing wizard, you will find yourself reaching for your physical keyboard more often than you would like.
Visual Clarity: As for screen clarity, this was a mixed bag. The Meta Quest 3 has improved resolution, but it is not quite the 4K dream that I had been waiting for. For most tasks, it was fine. Text was readable, and I could comfortably switch between multiple screens. But when it came to finer details, like coding or reading long-form text, it was a bit of a struggle. It was like using a 1080p monitor when you’re used to 4K.
Meta Quest 3 specs
Performance and latency in a work environment
Let’s get into the tech specs.
The Meta Quest 3 brings quite a few upgrades over its predecessors. The resolution is noticeably better. You’re looking at a 2064 x 2208 per-eye resolution, which makes a huge difference compared to the older Quest 2, which I use for Netflixing.
It is not quite at Apple Vision Pro levels, but it’s a big step forward.
Latency and connection: One of the most crucial aspects for a VR workspace is latency, and I’m happy to report that the Meta Quest 3 does pretty well here. Immersed relies on a stable WiFi connection, and the Quest 3 performed much better on my mediocre home network than the Quest Pro or Quest 2. Gone were the frustrating connection drops and jittery displays. As long as you have decent WiFi, the experience is smooth and responsive.
Heat and battery life: The Quest 3 gets warm, but not uncomfortably so. After a few hours, it was definitely noticeable, but nothing like the thermal issues of the Quest Pro, which makes your blood boil.
Battery life, on the other hand, is absolutely below par. I was getting around 2.5 to 3 hours of solid work time before needing a break to charge it up. Not great if you’re trying to power through a full day of work without interruptions.
But I switched fast to buying the BOBOVR magnetic batterypacks 10mAmps and you can get through the whole day with those.
Comparing Meta Quest 3 with other headsets
Apple Vision, Goov, etc. with Immersed
Now, let’s compare the Meta Quest 3 to some of its rivals, because you know we can’t talk about VR without mentioning Apple Vision Pro.
Apple Vision Pro: Apple’s Vision Pro is in a league of its own in terms of display quality and features. It has got AR capabilities that the Quest 3 just can’t match, but at $3,500, it’s also not exactly affordable. I was looking for something to dabble in AR productivity, and the Vision Pro is the way to go, but for me, and most people, the Quest 3 offers more than enough for a fraction of the cost.
Goov: If you’re looking for a budget option, the Goov VR headset is worth considering. It is not as polished as the Quest 3, but it’s a decent entry point for anyone curious about VR without breaking the bank. However, you will be sacrificing a lot in terms of resolution and performance.
In short, Meta Quest 3 strikes a nice balance between affordability and functionality. It is not the best VR headset out there, but it is one of the most accessible for people looking to work in virtual environments without selling a kidney.
Virtual Reality as the future workspace
Can it replace traditional setups?
Let’s get real for a second: can VR really replace your traditional workspace?
After spending a week fully immersed (pun intended), I am convinced that VR workspaces have a lot of potential, but that they are not quite ready to replace traditional setups.
Mobility is a huge benefit. You can pack up your entire multi-screen setup and take it with you wherever you go. Hotel rooms, coffee shops, tiny apartments. None of these constraints apply in VR. It is freeing, in a way. But there’s still something irreplaceable about the physicality of a good desk, a reliable chair, and a high-quality monitor
Now, as much as I would like to claim that I am living in the future and my traditional desk setup is gathering dust, that’s not true. VR can do a lot: it gives you endless screens, create immersive environments, lets you work from practically anywhere, but it is not without its drawbacks.
For starters, comfort is still a major issue.
And that is a huge drawback
After a few hours in the Meta Quest 3, my face felt like it had been through a round with a professional boxer.
Sure, the design has come a long way from the clunky days of early VR headsets, but no matter how light or ergonomic it is, wearing something on your face for extended periods will never match the comfort of staring at a high-quality monitor with nothing strapped to your head.
And then there is the resolution problem.
As great as the Meta Quest 3 is for gaming, watching Netflix, and general productivity, especially for tasks that do not require ultra-sharp visuals, there is no denying that the text still lacks the crispness of a high-resolution monitor.
If your work involves fine details, color grading, or anything visual where clarity is paramount, you are going to be frustrated. I had no major issues for writing or general multitasking, but I can’t see designers, editors, or anyone in creative industries being fully satisfied with VR just yet.
And there’s this thing called interaction.
Hand tracking is cool, don’t get me wrong, it feels futuristic and slick, but for precision tasks, nothing beats a good old mouse and keyboard. Sure, you can pair a physical keyboard with the VR headset (and I had done that after a day), but the experience isn’t seamless yet.
And while the Immersed app does a solid job of replicating a multi-screen setup, there is still a slight disconnect between you and your tools.
It’s not bad, but it’s not perfect either.
Should you move your workspace to VR
After a full week in VR, the verdict is in: VR workspaces are exciting, but not quite ready to replace traditional setups….yet.
Pros:
- Mobility is a massive plus. Being able to take a full multi-screen setup with you wherever you go is a a lot of fun, especially if you work remotely or travel frequently.
- Immersive environments can be a nice change of pace from staring at your regular old desk. Working in a virtual café or futuristic office makes things a little more fun (and if you’re like me and face a wall all day, it’s a big upgrade).
- Multiple screens without the clutter. In VR, you can have as many displays as you want without the need for a desk the size of a football field.
Cons:
- Comfort is still a challenge. Extended use will leave you wanting to rip the thing off your face after a few hours.
- Visual clarity isn’t quite there yet for tasks that require ultra-sharp details. If you are a designer or editor, you will probably want to stick to your high-res monitor for now.
- Interaction is still a bit clunky. Hand tracking and passthrough are great, but for precision work, nothing beats a good physical setup.
All things considered, Meta Quest 3 with the Immersed app makes for a great alternative to traditional workspaces in certain situations. Especially for those looking for flexibility or who are simply tired of staring at the same desk setup day after day.
But for now, I am keeping my monitors close at hand, even if the future of work might be floating somewhere in the virtual ether.
Reviews from the tech world
What the experts are saying
Of course, I am not the only one who has been playing around with the Meta Quest 3 and Immersed app. The tech world has had a lot to say about this combination, and as usual, opinions are mixed.
The Verge praised the Meta Quest 3 for its improved resolution and passthrough capabilities, but they also noted that while the headset is great for casual VR, it’s still “not quite ready to replace a proper workstation setup”. They echoed my experience with the resolution, saying that text can still feel fuzzy, and long sessions will leave you yearning for a regular monitor.
CNET was impressed with the Quest 3’s performance over older models. They mentioned that the hand tracking was a huge leap forward. But they also mentioned that the headset can still feel heavy after long work sessions, and the visual quality, doesn’t yet match the sharpness of 4K monitors.
Aaaaand TechRadar reviewed the Immersed app specifically and called it “one of the most compelling reasons to adopt VR for productivity”. Better then the alternative: Meta’s own Workspace. They mentioned the multi-screen setup and how the app allows for flexibility in how and where you work. They also noted that hand tracking and text clarity need further improvements to make it a truly viable replacement for traditional office setups.
To VR or Not to VR?
So, after seven straight days of working in VR, where do I stand?
Honestly, I’m torn.
Working in VR with the Meta Quest 3 and Immersed is a glimpse into the future of work. The flexibility, it’s mobility, and the potential of what this setup can offer are exciting. And being able to create an office environment with as many screens as I want, anywhere I want, is liberating, and just cool.
Watching Netflix, while you are typing a blog…
But on the other hand, we are not quite there yet.
The resolution, still isn’t sharp enough for me to say goodbye to my physical displays. The comfort factor also means that long work sessions aren’t as seamless as they should be. And the hand tracking is leaps and bounds ahead of older headsets, but it is not quite at the level of precision you need for serious productivity.
Would I recommend switching to a VR office full-time?
Nahhh…
But when you are on the go, with enough battery power and charging capabilities (and no one around to watch you, I would say: go for it!
For a day or so
And if you are someone who likes to experiment with new tech and wants a glimpse of what the future might hold, it’s definitely worth trying out.
See you in the virtual office, glasshole.
Signing-off Marco
Well, that’s a wrap for today. Tomorrow, I’ll have a fresh episode of TechTonic Shifts for you. If you enjoy my writing and want to support my work, feel free to buy me a coffee ♨️
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