Meta Provides Free Quest 3S Replacements for Headsets Affected by Software Glitch

There’s no greater holiday letdown than when tech gadgets wind up bricked or batteries refuse to charge. But imagine the dismay when a brand-new gadget, instead of delivering fun, hits a critical error that renders it unusable. That’s exactly what happened to several folks who unwrapped their new Quest devices last week, only to find them malfunctioning right out of the box. Thankfully, Meta quickly jumped in to resolve the fiasco, offering replacements and Horizon Store credits to those affected.

On Christmas Day, Reddit was buzzing with reports from frustrated new Quest owners. Following a mandatory update, their devices displayed a dire error message: “Your device is corrupt. It can’t be trusted.” This ominous note signaled the end for those headsets, as they refused to reset or turn on thereafter—effectively turning them into fancy paperweights.

It seems the culprit is the v72 update which Meta rolled out earlier in the month. Striking both new purchases and older gear that hadn’t seen an update in a while, this glitch caught many by surprise.

Meta addressed the situation in a help thread: “We’ve identified a software glitch that left some Quest 2/3/3S headsets unable to boot correctly. While we’re working to resolve this for everyone, most users should find their devices are functioning normally again.”

The company acted swiftly by halting the problematic firmware release. Those who have yet to configure their new Quest systems should be safe to proceed without issues. And for anyone whose device was bricked, Meta is replacing these with new units, alongside Horizon Store credit as a gesture of goodwill.

Meta elaborated in a ‘Next Steps’ thread for Quest 3S users, acknowledging the problem: “A limited number of Quest 3S headsets are experiencing a software update issue preventing them from booting. If yours is impacted, we’ll ship you a free replacement device and issue Horizon Store credit to express our support for you.”

Despite Meta’s swift action, some damage was done. Several users opted to take broken devices back to the store, hoping for better luck with a new unit. A Reddit user, ‘Physical-Slip5049’, shared a particularly heart-wrenching story of how this affected their son’s Christmas.

“I got a second-hand Quest 2 from eBay as a gift for my 9-year-old,” they recounted. “He opened it on Christmas morning, started up the device, and was hit with this update demand. Having never handled a VR set, I tried resetting it, following Meta’s instructions. Now, it’s a brick. It was turned on for barely five minutes after two years. My son, who had been eagerly waiting for months, spent half the day in tears.”

In cases such as these, Meta reportedly offers refurbished units, plus store credit, for out-of-warranty headsets like the Quest 2.

We’re watching the aftermath of this situation closely. If it happened to you, share your experience and let us know what actions Meta is taking in the comments.