The Horizon OS v77 system software update started to roll out last week in the PTC (Public Test Channel).
What Is the Public Test Channel (PTC)?
The Public Test Channel (PTC) is Meta Quest’s beta release channel. If you opt in, your headset receives a pre-release build of each Quest system software, now technically called Horizon OS, version.
Note that there are often features in the eventual stable version not present in the PTC, and occasionally (but rarely) features or changes in the PTC don’t make it to the stable version.
Each month, when the PTC is released, I analyze system files and apps to look for potential changes that might hint at what Meta is working on.
Many of the features discovered are still in development and may change significantly or never launch. Meta uses server-based rollouts as well. Even if an update supports a feature, individual headset owners may not gain access for weeks or months after it’s announced. In some cases, Meta may not announce a feature at all, and instead wait until a future version to both announce it and begin rolling it out.
Further, some features are announced but then delayed without notice, only to reappear in later announcements. Others quietly roll out to select users as experiments, without ever being officially mentioned.
What follows are some of my findings across v76 and v77 PTC.
Major UI Overhaul
As revealed at Meta Connect 2024, Meta is working on what is slated to be one of their most extensive initiatives yet to improve Horizon OS.
Meta’s vision for the future of Horizon OS as shown at Connect 2024.
In v77 or higher it seems like the longstanding dock and window system on Quest headsets, called the Universal Menu will be replaced by a new system referred to as the Personal Display. It consists of at least two major components: Portable Windows and Navigator.
Portable Windows
Portable Windows is the new name for the window configuration that previously allowed you to anchor up to three applications above the Universal Menu.
This will function identically to how it does today, but the main difference is that it will have a drastically simplified interface in place of the Universal Menu, with only a movement handle, a virtual Meta button to open Navigator, and a button to show or hide these windows.
Portable Windows can be shown or hidden by double-pressing the Meta button on your right Touch Controller, performing a double-pinch gesture while looking at your palm, or pressing the virtual button on the interface.
Navigator
A tutorial video for Navigator that appeared in the v76 system files.
Navigator is a brand new overlay-style launcher in Horizon OS. System functions previously found on the Universal Menu, such as Profile, Notifications, Library, People, Camera, Battery, Clock, and Quick Settings (now called Quick Controls), are now located here.
While initially some of these functions will open their existing 2D windows, the major improvement here is that the Navigator overlay itself can be opened at any time — completely independent of your current 2D apps within the Portable Windows display. This can be done via a single press of the Meta button on your right Touch Controller, performing a single-pinch gesture while looking at your palm, or by pressing the virtual Meta button on the interface.
Items such as Library and Quick Controls are directly integrated into the overlay, allowing you to open new apps and adjust settings like brightness without needing to rearrange active 2D windows.
The Navigator overlay also includes a space for privacy and system state indicators, located above the Quick Controls icon. A purple dot appears when permissions like the Microphone or Spatial Data are being used by apps, while an orange dot indicates that system settings such as Travel Mode are active.
Meta is working on multiple Navigator components and functions that appear to be a work in progress and may not ship with the initial release. These may include a Worlds and/or Spaces Tab with the ability to drop portals for other users, a Me Tab, and a Global Search function.
New Window Capabilities
Horizon OS initially limited users to three apps in a fixed layout above the Universal Menu. This changed with v67 PTC, which introduced the New Window Layout experimental feature, allowing up to three additional apps to be placed freely in space as Spatial Windows. It also added Theater View, which enlarges a single window and includes an option to dim the environment.
With this setup having become the default in v69, Meta now plans further improvements, either alongside or shortly after the introduction of Portable Windows and Navigator.
There are a number of window functions listed that are likely intended for internal debugging, but the new user-facing options set to be introduced appear to be:
- Pin (“Attach to environment”): “Stays behind when you travel to other worlds.”
- Return to Space (“Put Back”): Return the window where you last pinned it.
- Share (“Share”): “Shares a panel so that other users in your world can see it.”
- Tether (“Move with you”): “Follows your head movements.”
A version of the Pin feature being shown at Meta Connect 2024.
Depending on the implementation, this would effectively transition Horizon OS to a system where you can bring Portable Windows anywhere, while also supporting Spatial Windows that can be shared and saved in various states across immersive apps and Horizon Worlds. There are also references to a parameter that removes the current limit of three Spatial Windows, which would significantly enhance multitasking capabilities.
Eye-Tracking-Based Authentication
Strings added in v77 PTC suggest that Meta is working to support eye-tracking-based user authentication on Horizon OS via a feature called Face Enrollment.
This would serve as an additional security option alongside the current passcode system. The strings describe it as being used to unlock your account, access apps, and authorize purchases.
While this could be intended for Quest Pro, that device was discontinued earlier this year — making it more likely that it’s intended for Quest 4, and possibly upcoming Horizon OS-powered headsets from ASUS and Lenovo.
Surface Typing
Strings added across v76 and v77 PTC suggest that Meta is experimenting with the ability to turn flat surfaces into a virtual keyboard.
Researchers Say They’ve Solved Turning Any Surface Into A Keyboard
Researchers from Meta and ETH Zurich developed software called TouchInsight, which they say solves turning any surface into a virtual keyboard.
This concept was presented in research by Mark Zuckerberg and Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth in 2023. More recently, researchers from Meta and ETH Zurich developed a software system called TouchInsight, which they claim solves the problem of turning any surface into a virtual keyboard. Could productization be imminent?
The Removal Of Static Object Warnings
In v77 PTC, Meta appears to have removed the Quest 1-era Boundary obstacle detection system, called Playspace Scan, from the end of the Roomscale Boundary creation process.
Previously, if there was an object such as a table within your Boundary, it would be highlighted with a red pin, and you’d receive a warning prompting you to redraw. This wasn’t mandatory, however. It could be ignored by simply selecting “Continue.”
In v77 PTC, this system and its related strings appear to have been removed. However, there’s a major positive: in my testing, the Roomscale Boundary setup process runs much more smoothly, with fewer hitches and slowdowns.
The new “Stationary Ring” Boundary, with its adjustable sizes in Settings.
This change follows Meta’s broader rollout of a new Boundary flow introduced in v72, where users are now placed into a Stationary Boundary by default. You only need to draw a Roomscale Boundary when launching into an immersive app, if one hasn’t already been set.
2025 appears to be a year of strong emphasis on functionality and optimization for Horizon OS and the broader Horizon platform.
“Never Give Up”: Meta CTO Responds To Leaked Memo Discourse
Meta’s CTO has responded to the discourse around his leaked “Horizon Worlds on mobile absolutely has to break out” memo.
With looming competition from Google’s Android XR and reportedly upcoming Apple Vision devices, and as Meta simultaneously prepares the OS for third-party manufacturers, the company is seemingly doing everything it can to expand the platform’s capabilities while also enhancing stability and reliability.
This article was originally published on uploadvr.com
