Facebook Connect 2021: What to Expect and How to watch

Is Facebook creating a new Universe?

" Beyond Reels and commerce, I also want to share some thoughts on our longer-term efforts to build the next computing platform and bring the metaverse to life. This is a major area of investment for us and an important part of our strategy going forward. "

- Mark Zuckerberg, 26 Oct 2021

Facebook Connect is the company’s periodic conference for AR and VR developers held every year. It’s also frequently used as a platform for the company to make major announcements relating to its XR-based initiative enterprises. Due to the pandemic regarding coronavirus, Facebook conducted its first Facebook Connect conference virtually, with no in-person component. Facebook is additionally set to express Mixed Reality and Augmented Reality too. Facebook also began giving a good hint that, its Facebook Connect conference will not only be a showcase for its latest and updated virtual reality applications but also augmented reality applications. In the previous year, Facebook surprisingly announced Quest 2 at the first Facebook Connect conference. It was kind of surprising considering that the corporate had just shipped the original Quest the year before, and it had been unclear whether they would follow up so quickly with a successor. This year it's also anticipated that Facebook will talk further about its plans for the Metaverse and what it's planning regarding rebranding. Facebook Connect would begin on October 28, 2021, and is going to start with a keynote speech from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself, who is anticipated to go into lot more details about Facebook's rebranding, as well as the plans for the so-called "metaverse" that the company has undertaken a huge hiring process to prepare for. Oculus Consulting CTO, John Carmack is set to speak a few words about the state of Virtual Reality. This alone could be intriguing based on what we've seen on an official teaser by Facebook about future Oculus prototypes. Facebook is also set to speak a lot about Mixed Reality and Augmented Reality too. As well as the part VR will play in the productive workplaces of the future.

The Facebook Connect event takes place on October 28 at 10:30 pm Indian Standard Time. The conference is being hosted by Facebook Reality Labs over on its official Facebook connect page https://www.facebookconnect.com/en-us/ where you would be able to watch it. You will have to register in the following link for attending the conference before 28th October 10 am here.

 However, if you miss the live conference, we expect the Facebook Connect event will be uploaded to the official Oculus YouTube channel as it was done in prior years. We obviously love the Oculus Quest 2, but we suppose it's fair to say it's getting a bit long in the tooth as far as VR headsets go. It's still extensively the most used VR headset on the Oculus platform, thanks to its great combination of specifications and price point, but we think we are almost ready for a successor to assume the throne. According to the teaser and leaks by Facebook officially, a new Oculus headset seems almost to be confirmed. The new Quest VR headset controllers lack the Quest 2's iconic tracking rings, which signifies us that Oculus may have developed a new method of tracking in virtual environment that doesn't require the ring-shaped design found on previous controllers of other Quest devices.

Metaverse is a term that is generally used or refers to as a shared virtual world or environment which can be accessed by people using the internet. The term can also be related to digital environments which are made more realistic by the use of virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR). Few people also use the word metaverse to describe gaming worlds or gaming environments during which users have control over a character in the game that can explore around and interact with other players in the gaming world. There is also a specific type of metaverse which uses blockchain technology in which users can purchase virtual land and other digital assets using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum. Fans of the metaverse see this as the next upcoming stage or a sort of revolution in the development of the internet. At the current stage, people interact with each other online by browsing through websites such as social media platforms and using messaging applications. The basic thought of the metaverse is that it will create new online spaces during which people's interactions can be tuned to be more multi-dimensional, where users are able to immerse themselves in digital content instead of simply viewing it in a conventional way. The mere thought of the metaverse is attracting tons of interest from investors and top corporates who are keen to be a part of the upcoming booming field. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in the month of July that, the company will be trying an attempt to transition from being a conventional social media company to a metaverse company in the coming five years.