Apple has a strong track record of launching new product categories at the right time, and achieving success through superior design, spectacular marketing, and engaging features that drive adoption.
If the brand new virtual reality (VR) Vision Pro headset promised for next year is mainly intended for professionals, several specialists in the US have been able to try it out.
Towards an Apple meta duel
According to Bloomberg, Apple predicted that the product would eventually become as big as the iPad tablet or the Apple Watch. However, developing a market for this expensive product can take time.
Social media giant Meta, which sells various virtual reality headsets, has suffered billions of dollars in operating losses at its reality labs division. Earlier this year, the company slashed the price of its headsets by $500 after mixed reviews and “disappointing sales,” The Verge reported.
A promising high-tech helmet
The Vision Pro headset runs a whole host of Apple software on a new operating system called visionOS. Immersive photos and videos, personalized Disney Plus experiences and productivity apps like Keynote will be possible.
You can also play more than 100 Apple Arcade titles on a virtual screen that looks like your own private cinema.
It’s also possible to connect this Vision Pro headset to a Mac via Bluetooth to access your Mac applications and view your screen on a large, immersive screen that appears alongside the other Vision Pro applications you use . Apple says this setup will help you be more productive than ever.
Thanks to the power of the M2 chip, Apple’s headphones should be able to run most Mac applications natively – Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro recently arrived on the M2 iPads.
Overview of first impressions
After a roughly 30-minute demonstration at Techcrunch, the journalist reviewing the key features ready to test was convinced Apple had made nothing short of a genuine leap forward in mixed reality capability and execution with its new Apple has Vision Pro headset.
“The hardware is good – very good – with 24 million pixels on both panels, far more than any headset most consumers have come into contact with.” The optics are better, the headband is comfortable and quick to adjust, and an upper Strap keeps weight down. Apple says it’s still working on the light-sealing (cloth case) options that will come with the headset when it officially launches, but I found the default option convenient. The aim is to offer different sizes and shapes to adapt to different faces. The power connection is also very well designed: the connection is made via an internal pin and an external latch.
The headset features automatic eye relief calibration that adjusts the lenses to the center of your eyes.
The main frame and glass piece are of good quality, however it should be noted that they are very large. They are not difficult in themselves, but they are present.
3D movies
3D movies are really good. Jim Cameron probably had an emotional moment watching Avatar: The Way of the Water on the Apple Vision Pro. This device was designed for 3D – and it can display it almost instantly, so there’s a good library of movies shot in 3D to breathe new life into. The 3D photos and videos you can capture directly from Apple Vision Pro also look great, but I haven’t been able to test the capture myself so I’m not sure how it will look just yet. »
“A vision of the future”
At Yahoo Finance, after a half-hour demo, the journalist was convinced that “the headset is exactly what Apple says it is: a clear vision of the future and a compelling statement of where the industry is headed.” If there’s any cause for concern, it might be , because this vision is so compelling and moving that it demands careful and responsible handling by Apple and the developers. The question is not just whether it will change the world, but how.
It’s just pointless to compare the Vision Pro to other headsets like Meta’s, not only because it’s better (it is), but also because it’s trying to be something fundamentally different. A better question is whether it’s 10x better than Meta’s Quest as the price suggests. But that might not be the right question, as the Vision Pro’s purpose is both to show what’s possible and to convince you to buy it.
Compelling and immersive virtual objects and screens
It became clear almost immediately that the hardware does exactly what Apple promises. The virtual objects and screens were captivating and immersive; The real world seen behind them was largely authentic and true to the original. While there were small issues that will no doubt be improved in future generations, such as field of view width and brightness, they weren’t glaring enough to detract from the wonder of the experience.
A headset that brings images to life
In Vision Pro, I looked at photo albums that brought panoramas to life by placing them really close to your eyes, so close and so sharp you could almost feel them.
Apple has introduced a new format called Immersive Video that uses proprietary cameras to show a 180-degree view that also includes spatial audio. You can fly over a cliff or hover under the sea, but perhaps the most compelling demonstration is that of a series of sports games where you feel like you’re about to be hit by a ball and direct your own game by focusing your attention on it judge the player or action that interests you.
Permeable to reality
Apple also made sure that real-world people who enter the room can walk through this immersive reality and talk to me without losing touch with the real world, even though I was totally immersed. This is important as some VR headsets can induce fear by cutting you off from the outside world, while Vision Pro never lets you forget where you are. »
At Techradar: “The Vision Pro headset shares many similarities with the best current VR headsets. It has a large front that covers your eyes and secures over your head with a strap made of elastic fabric, plastic and padding.
The biggest difference VR veterans will notice is that the Vision Pro doesn’t have a battery, instead it has an external battery. It’s sort of an evolution of the HTC Vive XR Elite’s design, allowing the headset to go from a headset with a battery in the lanyard to a battery-free goggle that relies on external power.
According to Apple, this battery offers about two hours of use from a full charge and is small enough to fit in the wearer’s pocket. Connection to the headphones is via a cable, which is a bit out of step by Apple’s usual design standards, but what this device lacks in style it makes up for in convenience. We have found the Meta Quest Pro to be very comfortable, but wearing it for long periods of time can cause neck strain. Ask anyone who has worn the Quest Pro to work with it for a full week.
The final design detail to note is the Vision Pro’s Eyesight display. It looks pretty weird, maybe even a little scary, but we’ll reserve judgment until we’ve had a chance to try it out.
When the wearer of the Vision Pro uses augmented reality capabilities and can see the real world, nearby people can see their eyes through the front of the headset (this is actually a screen showing a view of the eyes captured by a camera was recorded, albeit by Apple’s). footage, you might be convinced it’s just a plane of glass). Instead, when the viewer is fully immersed in an experience, they see a cloud of color that indicates they are exploring another world.
Page dedicated to Apple’s Vision Pro headphones.