How to use surface keyboard and touchpad on Meta Quest 3 and 3S

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Updated:8 weeks ago

We are introducing Surface Inputs, keyboard and touchpad, as an experimental feature currently only available on Meta Quest 3 and 3S.

Surface keyboard and touchpad, or surface inputs, is an experimental feature that turns any desk or table into a virtual keyboard and touchpad. This feature gives you a familiar way to type and control the cursor without needing extra hardware.

Surface inputs overview

Surface inputs work by tracking your hand movements on a flat surface like a desk or table. When you place your hands on the surface, you can:

  • Type using all of your fingers, similar to typing on a physical keyboard.
  • Control the cursor by moving your finger on the touchpad area. You can click, scroll, and drag.

Surface inputs are designed for casual productivity tasks such as:

  • Browsing the web and searching for content.
  • Sending short messages to friends.
  • Searching for apps or videos.
  • Entering passwords and login information.

Note: Surface inputs are not designed to replace a physical keyboard or mouse. For longer writing sessions or tasks that need high precision, a physical keyboard or mouse is recommended.

To turn on the surface keyboard:

  1. Put on your Quest 3 or 3S headset, ensure hand tracking is enabled.
  2. Open Settings.
  3. Select Experimental.
  4. Turn on Surface keyboard.

Once the experimental feature is turned on, you can access the surface keyboard by selecting the surface keyboard button.

Set up surface inputs for the first time

The first time you use surface inputs, or when you move to a new surface, you need to calibrate them to your surface:

  1. Sit or stand near a flat surface like a desk or table.
  2. When prompted, place both hands flat on the surface.
  3. Hold your hands still for a few seconds while the system calibrates.
  4. The virtual keyboard and touchpad appear on the surface.

Your Quest remembers your last calibrated surface. The next time you use surface inputs in the same location, setup is faster.

Note: Surface inputs work best on flat, stable surfaces made of wood, glass, or plastic. They may not work well on soft, uneven, or moving surfaces.

When the surface keyboard appears, type using your fingers as you would on a physical keyboard:

  • Use all your fingers for faster typing.
  • Use one or two fingers if you prefer.

Keys available:

  • Letters (A-Z)
  • Numbers (0-9)
  • Common symbols and punctuation
  • Space, Backspace and Enter
  • Shift for capital letters and alternate symbols

Note: Some keys such as Escape, Tab, and arrow keys are not part of this initial experimental release.

The surface touchpad appears next to the keyboard. Use it to control the cursor:

One-finger gestures (index finger only):

  • Move the cursor: Slide your finger across the touchpad.
  • Click: Tap once.
  • Double-click: Tap twice quickly.
  • Drag: Double-tap and hold, then move your finger.

Two-finger gestures (index and middle finger only)

  • Scroll: Place two fingers on the touchpad and slide up, down, or sideways.
  • Right-click: Tap with two fingers.

To reposition the keyboard and touchpad:

  • Pinch the handle below the keyboard and drag it to a new position on your surface.

To hide surface inputs:

  1. Switch back to the floating system keyboard from the button on the keyboard assistant bar.
  2. Settings menu: Settings > Devices > Keyboard > Show surface keyboard.
  3. Quick settings button (if enabled during setup).

Note: The keyboard assistant bar shows up only when a text field is selected.

This is an experimental release focused on core typing and cursor control. You may notice:

  • Typing speed is typically faster than the floating virtual keyboard but slower than a physical keyboard.
  • Some keys or gestures may need practice.
  • The feature works best for short to medium text entry.

  • Calibration: To improve the typing accuracy, you can trigger calibration manually by:
    • Using the calibration button in the keyboard assistant bar (button with keyboard and up/down arrows)
    • Through setting menu: Settings > Devices > Keyboard >Setup surface
  • Lighting: Use surface inputs in a well-lit room. Low light may affect hand tracking and typing accuracy.
  • Steady surface: Use a stable, flat surface. Avoid surfaces that move or vibrate.
  • Hand position: Keep your hands at a consistent height above the surface for better accuracy. Type naturally as you would on a regular keyboard.
  • Start simple: Begin with short typing tasks like searching or messaging to get comfortable with the feature.

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