The Meta Quest 3S and Quest 3 are excellent headsets, suitable for both standalone and PCVR use, and incredible for the price. Sadly, much like the Meta Quest 2 before them, they have a significant weak point: the comfort of the head strap and its suitability for more active games, or the lack thereof. Fortunately, there are plenty of third-party solutions for this, and the Syntech Head Strap with Battery Pack for Quest 3/3S is certainly one worth considering.
Why Get This Head Strap?
The Syntech Head Strap with Battery Pack for Quest 3/3S offers vastly improved comfort and security over the default Meta Quest 3S/3 head strap, along with a 10,000mAh battery pack which can significantly extend your playtime. This makes longer sessions much more comfortable, with several hours of non-stop gameplay now becoming possible. Good news, as I never know when to put down In Death: Unchained.
It’s easy to fit how you like it as it features two adjustable headstraps, one that goes from the front to the back and a padded one that goes from side to side, along with a dial on the back to tighten the fit. I’ve tested it with multiple active games such as Knockout League, PowerBeats VR, and Beat Saber, and it’s stayed securely in place without feeling too tight. The multiple points to adjust it really do help to improve the fit to keep it securely in place.
The additional battery does add some weight, which I found noticeable at first, but after a few minutes, I had all but forgotten it. It’s balanced very well, and pressure is distributed well. That said, if it does become a bother, unlike some other straps, the battery is easily detachable here. This also means that it’s possible to order a spare battery pack and switch them out if needed for even longer gameplay sessions. It’s also worth noting that the Syntech Head Strap does have the “Made by Meta” label, so there’s some feeling of security when connecting the batteries to this. Meta Support has mentioned unofficial battery packs as a potential cause of errors before, and this is always a concern with third-party accessories.
What’s The Catch?
If you compare prices, the Syntech Head Strap with Battery Pack for Quest 3/3S comes out as almost half the price of similar products with matching battery capacity from certain popular third-party brands. There are a couple of downsides as a cost.
First is the appearance. The padded strap that goes along the middle looks like it’s been added on as an afterthought. The battery looks quite nice from the back with an LED circle as a battery indicator, but the view from the front is flat plastic with holes and screws. The yellow cable stands out, and it doesn’t run smoothly like in the marketing images, so it sticks outward, despite a single velcro strap to pin it in place. It all looks a bit Frankensteined together. Admittedly, this isn’t much of an issue to me; I can’t see myself when playing VR anyway. It’s a bit of a pity since my VR headsets are on display though.
The second is the initial assembly. I was happy to see there was what looked like a clear diagram on how to put it all together, and for the most part, assembly went quickly and smoothly. The big exception was the step on how the padded strap is secured with the metal loop, which wasn’t clear on the diagram. It was all fine and very secure when done, but it took several attempts to figure it out.
While neither of these points is ideal, they’re fairly minor overall. Looking at similar products with the same additional battery capacity and optional convenience features like single-point charging, a real-time battery display, or a more integrated appearance come in at almost twice the price, it feels like a very fair trade-off.
Verdict
The Syntech Head Strap with Battery Pack for Quest 3/3S is a well-priced product that does the basics very well, even if it never goes far beyond them. It lets you play in comfort, for a long time, and all at a much lower price than many of the similar head straps.
SYNTECH HEAD STRAP WITH BATTERY PACK FOR QUEST 3/3S IS RECOMMENDED
Want to see more Virtual Reality reviews? Check out our review of Dyschronia: Chronos Alternate.
Many thanks go to Syntech for providing a review unit of the Syntech Head Strap with Battery Pack for Quest 3/3S.
A gamer since the days of Amstrad and DOS and someone who has dabbled in a variety of professions. He enjoys a wide variety of genres, but has been focusing on visual novels and virtual reality in recent years. Head Editor of NookGaming. Follow him and the website on @NookSite.
