Oculus Introduces App Lab for App Installs Outside of Quest Store

Oculus allows developers to install applications outside of the Quest Store on the Oculus Quest. As a result, developers no longer have to go through a permission procedure to offer apps on the VR glasses.

Oculus writes in a blog post that App Lab is a new way to distribute apps, for example directly from web pages or via platforms such as SideQuest. No quality control is then performed on the apps, as is done with apps distributed via the Quest Store. However, developers must register the app via their Developer Dashboard. The app is therefore still tested in advance. It is therefore also possible to use beta or test versions of apps or to offer apps only to a specific audience, the Facebook subsidiary writes. The company has partnered with SideQuest, which will give the apps visibility on their platform.

The vr maker has put a number of examples online of apps that can currently be downloaded via App Lab. Users who search for that app on the Oculus website will see a pop-up warning that the app may be under development and may contain features that the user does not expect.

Although the App Lab apps cannot be found in the Quest Store, they are ultimately among all other apps for the user. There will be no special label. To install an app, it is not necessary for a user to put their Quest in developer mode and no PC is required to install the apps.