Microsoft has announced that Windows 11 support is officially coming to the Quest 3 and Quest 3S headsets. The announcement comes as part of Microsoft Ignite 2024, which was otherwise focused on updates to its Copilot AI systems. And though not many details were shared on the mixed reality front, it’s nice to see the support finally arrive.
According to the announcement, the update will bring “the full capabilities of Windows 11 to mixed reality headsets” through either a local Windows PC or a Windows 365 Cloud PC. The point, of course, is not to bring PC games into VR, but rather to do to work in mixed reality. You’ll be able to have multiple virtual monitors all at your disposal to use however you want, regardless of the physical space you’re working in.
Microsoft is definitely just catching up here, though. Apple has been pushing its support for using MacBook with the Vision Pro all year. With the two newest Quest headsets, however, there’s never been better hardware to support Microsoft’s efforts in bringing its operating system to mixed reality.
The feature was first hinted at back in 2022 in tandem with the launch of the Meta Quest Pro. Here’s what the blog post said at the time: “In the future, Windows 365 will also be available on Meta Quest devices, with the ability to stream a Windows Cloud PC, including your personalized apps, content, and settings.”
There’s been very little in the means of updates since then. In fact, Windows Mixed Reality headsets were unceremoniously deprecated in December 2023. The Quest Pro has also been discontinued.
But now, Microsoft is finally bringing something to the table. The company says that setup is “seamless” and it “takes only seconds to connect to a private, high-quality, large multiple-monitor workstation.”
There are currently ways to get Windows 11 running on a Quest headset, such as through installing a Meta or third-party remote desktop app. We don’t yet know exactly how Microsoft’s solution will differ, but assume it will be more full-featured implementation.
With more headsets coming next year in the Horizon OS family, it’s a good time for Microsoft to get serious about its support for the platform if it wants to keep up with Apple.
