The Oculus Quest 2 is the obvious answer for what VR headset should most people buy. It doesn't require a VR-ready laptop or desktop and at just $299 for the base model, it is an incredible value.
The downside is that it requires a Facebook account to actually use the headset, which means some of your data is being sent to the company. As it turns out, there is a version of the Quest 2 without that requirement, however, it will cost you extra and you won't find it at Best Buy or on Amazon (via PC Gamer).
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So what is this magical Facebook-free Oculus Quest 2? It's the business version. The hardware is identical to the $399 version of the Quest 2 with 256GB of storage, but instead of a Facebook account, it allows management via enterprise software that is under your control.
If you were unaware of the data that Facebook collects on Quest owners, it includes physical data like your hand size and presumably your height. Data about the space that you play in such as dimensions of the Guardian spaces that you make and your movement within them. And, of course, any content that you create inside the Quest. There are also more common things like cookies that track info like Oculus Browser usage or other app interactions.
Now for the bad news: there's no direct way to purchase the business version of the Oculus Quest 2; it requires contacting Oculus Business and setting up the purchase through an authorized distribution channel. If you make it over that hurdle, you will be paying a $400 premium, so double the cost of the Quest 2 and on top of that, you have a $180-a -ear subscription fee after the first year that covers the added services and support afforded to business users.
Ultimately, this isn't really a solution for consumers, but it does potentially offer a little insight into the real cost of the Quest 2 hardware and, in turn, the value Facebook places on your data.
