Controllers and Hand Tracking
Meta Quest controllers
Using Touch controllers
Your Touch controllers are a pair of tracked controllers that give you hand presence — the feeling that your virtual hands are actually your own. Touch controllers feature traditional action buttons, thumb-sticks and analog triggers that add familiarity to new experiences.
Here's a few examples of what the Touch controller buttons can do:
- Thumbsticks navigate your virtual environment.
- Trigger (on the front of the controller),
and
buttons select objects in your environment.
and
buttons return you to the previous screen or menu.
- Oculus
button brings up the universal menu. You can also press and hold
- Grip button (on the side of the controller) grabs objects or makes a fist when using your virtual hands.
button brings up the menu inside apps and experiences.
- You can press any button to wake the controllers after you turn on your headset.
Note: Individual apps may include their own tutorials for how to use the buttons on your Touch controllers.
Pairing and unpairing Touch controllers to your headset
To pair your Touch controllers:
- Open the Oculus mobile app on your phone.
- Tap on the image of your headset in the top left corner of your mobile app.
- Tap Devices in the bottom right corner of your app.
- Tap Controllers then tap Left or Right to choose which controller you'd like to pair.
- Press and hold the
Once you've paired your controllers, the controllers will automatically connect to your headset each time you turn it on, if it's nearby.
To unpair your controllers:
- Open the Oculus mobile app on your phone.
- Tap Devices from the bottom menu.
- Tap on the image of the headset you currently have paired.
- Tap Controllers, then tap the controller that you want to unpair.
- Tap Unpair Controller.
Attaching the lanyard to your Meta Quest controllers
The included lanyards are used to secure the Meta Quest 2 or Meta Quest controllers to your wrists during use. When you unbox your Meta Quest 2, the lanyards will already be attached.
If you need to remove and reattach your lanyards to your controllers:
- Pick up one of your controllers and remove the battery cover by lightly sliding your thumb down the battery door until it comes loose.
- On the inside edge of your controller, below the open battery compartment, you'll see a circular cutout. Slide the plastic end of your lanyard into the small hole in the center of the circular cutout. When the lanyard is seated correctly, the plastic piece sits entirely inside the hole.
- Slide the string of your lanyard downward so that it's sitting in the lanyard cutout at the bottom of the controller. If it's seated correctly, it won't obstruct the battery door cover you removed in step one.
- Slide the battery door cover back into place until it clicks and sits flush against the controller.
- Before using, pull down on your lanyard to ensure it's securely connected to the controller and doesn't unseat the battery cover.
Setting up a gamepad with Meta Quest 2 or Meta Quest
You can use Bluetooth 3.0 class 2 gamepads with your Meta Quest 2 or Meta Quest by connecting it to your headset using the Oculus mobile app.
To connect a gamepad to your Meta Quest 2 or Meta Quest:
- Make sure your headset is turned on, then open the Oculus mobile app on your phone.
- Tap
Menu in the bottom right corner of the Oculus mobile app.
- Tap
Devices.
- Below Headset Settings, tap Controllers.
- Tap Pair New Controller, then tap Pair Gamepad.
- Turn on your gamepad and turn on bluetooth discoverability on the gamepad.
- On your phone, tap the gamepad you'd like to connect.
- If pairing was successful, you should now see your gamepad listed as an option after your Touch controllers.
Hand Tracking
Getting started with Hand Tracking on Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest
Hand Tracking is a feature for Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest that allows you to use your hands in place of your Touch controllers.
How does Hand Tracking work?
Hand Tracking works by using the inside-out cameras on Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest. Your headset will detect the position and orientation of your hands and the configuration of your fingers. Once detected, computer vision algorithms are used to track the movement and orientation of your hands.
For more information on how Hand Tracking works and what information we collect, visit our Hand Tracking Privacy Notice.
Turn Hand Tracking on or off
- Press
- Hover over the clock on the left side of the universal menu. When Quick Settings appears, select it to open the Quick Settings panel.
- Select
Settings in the top right corner.
- Select Device from the left menu, then select Hands and Controllers.
- Select the toggle next to Hand Tracking to turn it on or off.
From here, you can also turn auto switch for hand tracking on or off.
- If this setting is on, your headset will automatically switch between using your hands or controllers if you put your controllers down or pick them up.
- If this setting is off, you will need to manually enable and disable hand tracking.
What gestures can I use with Hand Tracking?
Hand Tracking for Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest currently supports the following gestures:
| Gestures | What it's used for | How to do it | |
Point and Pinch | To select something. | When the cursor appears, point your hand at what you want to select. Then, pinch your thumb and finger together to select. |  |
Pinch and Scroll | Scrolling up, down, left, or right | Pinch your fingers inward. While still pinched inward, move your hand up, down, left or right to scroll. When you’re done scrolling, release. |  |
Palm Pinch | Brings you back to your Meta Home menu. | Look at your palm at eye level, then hold your thumb and index finger together until the Oculus icon fills up, then release. |  |
Apps that support Hand Tracking on Meta Quest 2
You can see if an app supports Hand Tracking by viewing its product details page in the Meta Store. If Hand Tracking is supported, it will be listed as one of the input methods for that app or game.
Learn more about Hand Tracking on Meta Quest 2.
Hand Tracking for Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest with Oculus TV
Hand Tracking can be used with Oculus TV and its associated channels to play, pause, and stop the content that you’re viewing.
To use Hand Tracking with Oculus TV:
- Place your palm in the face up position to show the laser pointer.
- When the control menu becomes available, use the pinch gesture to select the appropriate control.
Note: Third party media apps like Netflix and Hulu do not currently support hand tracking.
Learn more about how to turn on Hand Tracking for Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest.
