Quest Developers Can Now Release Apps Utilizing Headset Cameras for World Scanning

Gotta admit, this news about Meta’s Quest headset—it’s like a bunch of little doors swinging open. I mean, these gadgets always leaned heavy on cameras, right? But devs were kinda locked out from playing with the camera feeds themselves. Crazy, huh?

So picture this: all those groundbreaking apps now have a green light to go wild with the Quest’s cameras thanks to this new update. As of this week, the cool cats coding away can finally release stuff on the Horizon store—using those juicy front-facing lenses on the Quest 3 and 3S. Why does this feel like the start of a sci-fi movie? No clue, but my brain’s on that wavelength.

Always wondered why Meta kept the camera stuff locked down tight. I mean, smartphones have been all-in on computer vision for ages. Maybe Meta’s just, like, super paranoid about privacy? Probably not helped by their past oopsies on that front.

Before this shift, apps could get a taste of their surroundings. Not the full visual feast, though. They relied on whatever the system decided to share. You couldn’t track, say, a rubber chicken you’re waving around. Important stuff, right?

Meta finally gave the nod to direct camera access last year. But it was hush-hush, cloak-and-dagger style until folks were allowed to strut their digital creations publicly. Now, what got my attention—why aren’t all these specs in a catchy tune or something? Latency sits somewhere around 40-60ms, chip performance? Only a tiny nibble—1-2% per camera. Oh, and 45MB memory usage. And don’t get me started on the data rate. 30Hz, if you’re counting.

The resolution is a nice 1280×960, and apparently, we’re dealing with some fancy YUV420 format. All these numbers make my head spin, but maybe someone’s into that sort of thing. Each to their own, I say.

Oh! Before I forget, Meta’s laid down the law with their Developer Data Use Policy. So, no sneaky surveillance tricks or pinpointing folks without jumping through policy hoops. Respecting the rules of the digital jungle and all that jazz.

So, there it is—my meandering thoughts on this whole shindig. Where this is heading? No clue. But maybe, just maybe, it’s headed somewhere interesting. Or maybe I just like gadgets a bit too much. Who knows.