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Comment by vermilingua | Hacker News Reader

Can anyone comment on the Quest vs Quest 2? I've heard that it's a difficult tradeoff, as the build quality of the Quest is better while the screen quality of the Quest 2 is a huge improvement.

If the plan is to use one for a monitor replacement for extended periods, which is a better choice?

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I have had both and although the Quest 2 has shitty lens adjustment that doesn't fit my IPD (pupillary distance) correctly, the clarity on the Quest 2, thanks to the higher resolution display and full-RGB pixel matrix vs pentile on the Quest 1, was just miles better than on the Quest 1 which had a better IPD adjustment system that fitted my eyesight. Couple this with the lower weight, more comfortable strap (I know), more powerful processor, higher refresh rate, the Quest 1 can't even hold a candle to the Quest 2.

Sold the Quest 1 immediately and kept the Quest 2.

Although I wouldn't use either as a monitor replacement for more than 30 minutes. The tech is just not there yet for eye-stranious work like reading small text like code. Best kept for entertainment and content consumption.

This guy[1] seems to like using the Quest 2 as a monitor replacement for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. Previous HN discussion[2].

[1] https://blog.immersed.team/working-from-orbit-39bf95a6d385

[2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28678041

I get that some users could tolerate this all day, but the problem with having a display strapped to your face with plastic lenses in between that have not been tailor to your eyesight is bound to be uncomfortable to a lot of users at prolonged use.

He tackles that:

> If you need corrective lenses, get lens inserts: it’s superior to wearing glasses, and I find it better than wearing contacts. For horrible astigmatic myopia like mine (-7.5), it was cheaper than most pairs of glasses I’ve had, and a totally reasonable expense since I use them all day for work.

That doesn't fix the issue with the limited IPD adjustment on the Quest 2 where if you're out of the 3 fixed setting then eye strain happens.

Do you know if mid points work? I’ve heard mixed things, I’m not sure if the IPD is a combination of the lens and software (since it does display on screen when switching). I’m also between notches on the IPD but I’m unsure if trying to get it stuck halfway works or is a good idea.

That's not a viable option for me as my IPD is not between settings but at the outer extreme of the widest setting (Quest 2 only goes as far as 68 mm while Quest 1 went to 72 mm which is close to my IPD). It's still usable for games without any headaches, but I wouldn't use it for reading text or long gaming sessions.

Just a heads-up from another Quest 2 user - if you're gentle, you can push the lenses in between the 3 predefined settings, and they will stay there. This helped me a lot, since my IPD is somewhere in between the middle and the wide setting.

Only 3 options is definitely a weird choice on Oculus' part (especially since the device apparently includes a potentiometer, so it actually acknowledges in-between settings!), but at least there's a workaround.

It's still usable for games without any headaches, but I wouldn't use it for reading text or long gaming sessions.

Thank you for posting this! I've been holding off on buying a Quest for a long time because of my 72.5mm IPD.

I have a quest 2 and I don’t think it’s a great monitor replacement, especially as someone with multiple 4K screens. The resolution isn’t good enough to comfortably read for extended periods IMO.

E: out of curiosity, I pulled up immersed to browse this thread on HN and my eyes can't take it for too long.

If you do use it as a monitor replacement, here's a suggestion: make your screens small and keep them close to you. Scanning with your eyes doesn't work as well, you should be moving your head a lot more.

I don’t think you can comfortably use Q1 as monitor replacement. IMO, resolution is not enough for comfortable reading.

I have a multi monitor setup for no good reason[1] and for me the standard 90-100deg FOV of common binocular VR headsets didn't seem wide enough for my daily use cases.

1: bad reason: because good-enough displays are cheap! why not double down on it.

I have both -- the Oculus Quest 2 is better on both fronts, it's lighter and the screen is better.

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