Airlink is out of beta

[xkm1948]

Just noticed after updating my Oculus software on the computer side. Paired with latest Quest 2 software, airlink is no longer beta.

Performance has improved a lot. I have the bitrate locked at 200Mbps and silky smooth. It now performs much better than Virtual Desktop Streamer. Meta is truly committed to bringing in best performance for Quest 2. Highly recommend

 

[Octavean]

Nice but what are your wireless network specs?

 

[mama]

And do you need a Facebook account?

 

[frankr2994]

Just got this going today. Wifi 6 router hooked straight to the gaming PC so I have a dedicated WiFi connection for the quest. Still sorting it all out but it did work well. I don't have enough time involved yet but I'd like to improve the graphics. I was slightly disappointed with all this wifi 6 talk that using it with a 80mhz channel still caps the bit rate at 200mbps. Anyways before when I tried airlink I had constant drop out. A user on here gave me some tips on the second dedicated router. Works well and air link did give me the option to sign in with my oculus account or Facebook

 

[Octavean]

VR Air Bridge is apparently going to be a new hardware / software option;

• A new wireless VR dongle for the Quest 2, known as VR Air Bridge, has appeared in the Oculus drivers on PC.
• This Wi-Fi dongle would be used to provide a direct wireless connection to the Quest 2 for better quality Air Link wireless PC VR gameplay.
• The dongle is reportedly based on an existing D-Link AX1800 Wi-Fi 6 USB adapter.

If you're a VR gamer who enjoys playing wireless PC VR games via the Meta Quest 2, a new USB adapter in development could provide an even higher-quality wireless experience. That new adapter, known as VR Air Bridge for the time being, was discovered by software engineer @ItsKaitlyn03 on Twitter as part of a new Oculus driver update package.

VR Air Bridge will make wireless PC VR on Quest 2 even better than before

A new USB adapter from Meta and D-Link could be in the works

www.androidcentral.com

Oculus Quest 2 wireless adapter could help cut the cord

Meta and D-Link are potentially working on a new Oculus Quest 2 wireless USB adapter that boasts direct connectivity between the headset and your gaming PC

www.pcgamesn.com

Naturally this wouldn’t benefit original Oculus Quest users as it doesn’t have WiFi 6 support. Although a dedicated fast connection seems like it’s own reward over a congested network No matter what.

 

[Octavean]

So once again, it looks like the upcoming (supposedly) VR Air Bridge provides a dedicated WiFi 6 point to point connection between your PC and Oculus Quest 2. There have now been some leaked instructions for setup.

While I don’t question the benefit of such a configuration, I do question he need for an Oculus (Meta) branded product to achieve the end results. So for example, my main system currently uses an ASRock X570 Taichi motherboard that has onboard Intel Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax totally going unused at the moment. Why can’t something like that be used once the feature is enabled in the Quest 2 firmware?

I guess I’m just saying it would be a shame if Meta (FB) attempted to block third party wireless solutions from achieving the same results. It would probably get hacked anyway. Also the OEM solution they are supposedly using is a third party anyway (D-Link) not an in-house solution.

VR Air Bridge Wireless USB Dongle For Quest 2 Manual Leaks Online

A manual for the previously leaked ‘VR Air Bridge’ USB wireless dongle for Quest, made by D-Link, was uploaded to Manuals+. Two weeks ago software engineer ItsKaitlyn03 found code in the Oculus PC drivers referencing a ‘D-Link DWA-F18 VR Air Bridge’, and in verifying this claim we also found...

uploadvr.com

Edit:

In late 2019, before Air Link had even been announced, “Consulting CTO” John Carmack floated the idea of a USB Wi-Fi dongle running custom firmware for wireless VR. The headset would directly connect to it instead of your home network, offering a dedicated nearby connection. In an April 2021 conversation with Meta’s CTO, just after Air Link shipped, Carmack remarked “We may yet in the future make some extra Wi-Fi dongle or have some partnership with different firmware flashes for something that can let us get somewhat better performance in congested conditions“.

Well I guess Carmack has spoken!

It seems custom firmware “special sauce“ is the culprit here. So now I’m wondering, if VR Air Bridge is ever released then how much will it cost and how beneficial it will be?

The D-Link AX1800 is curr about ~$67 on Amazon.