Meta Quest 2 vs Pico 4: Which virtual reality headset is better?

The Meta Quest 2, formerly known as the Oculus Quest 2, represents something of a paradigm shift in virtual reality. Without a doubt, the Meta Quest is the world’s most popular virtual reality headset and the first to move out of the realm of niche enthusiasts and into a more mainstream device.

For a long time, the Quest 2 had no real competition, being one of the only affordable standalone VR headsets on the market. However, that changed with the launch of the Pico 4. Interestingly, Pico is a subsidiary of ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok.

So, do the new Pico scopes have what it takes to compete with the Quest 2?

	Meta Quest 2
	399$

Design of both VR headsets

Both visors have a fairly similar aesthetic, with a predominantly white frame and smooth curves throughout. The most obvious differentiator is the Pico 4’s glossy black front panel, which makes the visors look like a pair of futuristic ski goggles.

The Quest 2 comes with basic fabric head straps, and Meta sells a rigid version with an extended battery for an extra $127. In contrast, the Pico 4 comes at no extra cost with a rigid strap that looks like the upgraded Quest Elite strap.

The Pico 4’s battery is placed in the back of the headband, allowing for better weight distribution, while the Quest 2 places all the gear in the front. This means there is less weight on the face with the Pico visor design, which translates into a more comfortable experience.

The Quest 2 features a three-stage IPD adjustment that is manually adjusted by pushing the lenses into three preset positions. The IPD adjustment on the Pico 4 is motorized and is accessible from the system menu.

This offers a more elegant and modern solution to Pico, but whether or not this is important is up to each individual. If IPD measurement is part of the Quest presets, you’ll probably be extremely happy with the granular control of Pico 4.

Meta Quest 2 vs Pico 4 Hardware and Battery

Both the Pico 4 and Quest 2 run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 platform, so performance should be very similar. However, the Pico 4 has a slight advantage with its 8GB of RAM versus the Quest’s 6GB. Both Visors can be purchased with either 128 or 256 GB of internal storage.

The Pico 4 has a larger battery than the Quest 2, but in actual use, both scopes offer about 2-3 hours of battery life. Both scopes can be supplemented with external batteries if you need more play time and a range of specially designed battery accessories are available.

Visuals and controllers

The Pico 4 has a higher resolution screen than the Quest 2, so content appears sharper. It’s less sensitive to glare and offers greater clarity toward the edges of the frame compared to the Fresnel lenses of the Quest 2. The Pico claims to offer a 105-degree field of view, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. I could not find a comparable statistic for Quest 2.

The Pico 4 has a pass-through color camera that can be activated to view the environment without removing the visors. This seems to be better than the Quest 2’s monochrome camera, but the quality is still not very high.

As of this writing, none of the visors can use this camera for mixed reality experiences, but Pico says mixed reality experiences are planned for its next development.

Both headsets come with wireless touch controllers and both controllers have very similar button layouts. Both have joysticks, grip buttons and triggers in similar locations. Both also use rings to track their location, but these rings are implemented very differently.

The Pico 4 controller places the ring around the back of your hand, allowing you to move the controllers closer together without bumping the tracking rings against each other. This small change is very useful in practice, as it allows you to perform in-game actions, like marking an arrow, without having to worry about the physical size of the controller.

	Meta Quest 2
	399$

Price, software and verdict

The Pico 4 ($499) has a slightly lower MSRP than the Quest 2 ($698.99), but it won’t be arriving in the U.S. yet. If you’re in a compatible region, the Pico 4 is definitely superior hardware. It has better visual fidelity, a more comfortable design, more RAM and a lower price.

It’s an obvious choice, right? Well, there’s a little more to it than that choice. Where Meta Quest 2 really shines is with its software and its huge library of games and applications.

Pico is a newcomer to the indie VR market and as such, it offers a very small library compared to Meta Quest 2, which promises to have up to 150 games available. With Meta Quest 2 offering a library at least three times larger than Pico’s, including hit titles such as Beat Saber, it’s safe to say that Meta has an edge over Pico.

If you plan to use either headset with a PC for gaming, whether wireless or tethered, then standalone game libraries are less of an issue and the Pico 4 will be the better choice.

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