Does the Oculus Rift S need external sensors?

Insight tracking

Previous Oculus Rifts relied on three, or even four, cameras to track yourself and the room that you're in. The Oculus Rift S removed the need for any external sensors thanks to five built-in cameras. These cameras are placed around the front of the headset and track your Touch Controllers and the room you're in. These work together with other sensors inside the helmet to create a seamless experience that tracks you in all directions in the room you're using as a VR space.

The Oculus Rift S supports six degrees of freedom tracking, which means it can follow your movements forward, backward, up, down, left, and right. You can walk around, twist, duck, and jump in real life and have those movements instantly translated into any game that you're playing.

Though the Oculus Rift S doesn't require any external sensors, there does need to be enough light in the room for the built-in cameras to scan around you. This doesn't need to be a professional studio setup by any means. In most cases, a normal light in a room will do.

Opening doors

While the Oculus Rift S does require a cable be connected to your PC, the fact that it doesn't require any external sensors opens the door to more possibilities. You could potentially have a backpack PC setup and have the Rift S track you as you move freely around an area.

Additionally, nothing is stopping you from using the Oculus Rift S on any PC that has the appropriate specs. If your friend has a gaming PC, you could bring your Oculus Rift S over to their house. Similarly, if you have multiple PCs capable of running the Oculus Rift S, you can jump back and forth between them. You don't need to dedicate a specific room or space to VR because you don't have to rely on external sensors that require setting up.