META QUEST 3 AR/VR GOGGLES
I have been a big fan of digital amateur radio modes for over 30 years and have always wanted the most compact amateur radio station possible for home and travelling. Be it with a GoBox, smartphones or tablets. The more modern the radios became, the fewer cables were needed, and nowadays the connection between computer and radio is possible with WLAN and Bluetooth. I always found the monitors limiting. The smaller the setup, the smaller the screen size. That’s why I’ve always followed the development of AR/VR glasses. So far, it has been rather unsatisfactory, but now with the META QUEST 3, completely new possibilities are opening up. Unlike before, I no longer use VNC to access a computer via VNC, although this would be possible with the QUEST 3, but instead install the amateur radio programmes directly on the glasses. The META QUEST 3 runs an Android operating system. Unfortunately, the Google Play Store is not (yet) available. However, it is possible to install programmes via sideloading. I tried this out straight away with APRSDroid and FT8CN. And lo and behold, it works perfectly. APRSDroid is paired with the Kenwood TH-D74 via Bluetooth and FT8CN connects to the ICOM IC-705 via WLAN. This works either at home in your own WLAN, or with the IC-705 as an access point or, as I prefer, on the go with a mobile 5G smartphone hotspot. This allows you to use amateur radio and the internet at the same time. This also makes it easy to synchronise the time for FT8. I’m just starting out with this new setup and I’m excited to see what else will be possible. Technological development has always inspired me and the VR and AR display in the QUEST 3 is really impressive.
73, Karl-Heinz – https://dl1gkk.com
