During its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple announced the much-awaited release of its mixed-reality headset, the Vision Pro. The headset, priced at $3,499, is Apple’s first major new product since the Apple Watch in 2014. With the Vision Pro, users can experience apps in a new way and navigate through them using their eyes and hands. They can also search using their voices. The headset can be used for watching movies, including 3-D movies with spatial audio, viewing personal pictures and videos, playing video games, and for work with video conferencing apps, Microsoft Office tools, or Adobe Lightroom. Moreover, it can create a realistic-looking avatar of the user to use in the experience.
Features of the Vision Pro
The Vision Pro is designed to fit different face shapes and sizes with adjustable and interchangeable parts. One of its features, EyeSight, allows the headset to become transparent or opaque to signal to people around the user if they’re immersed in an experience or available to interact. The spatial audio feature makes it feel like the user is totally immersed in the experience, including by sensing other items in the room. The headset can also access the outside world through cameras mounted on it, making it a “mixed reality” headset.
Partnerships and the Future of Augmented Reality
Apple announced several partnerships during the launch, including a partnership with Disney+ and Unity, a game development platform. Disney CEO, Bob Iger, appeared on stage to announce that Disney+ would be available on the Vision Pro from day one of its release. Unity’s stock spiked over 20% after Apple announced the partnership.
Apple has been working on headset hardware and software since at least 2016 in a division called the Technology Development Group. The launch of the Vision Pro is the culmination of years of development. Apple CEO Tim Cook has spoken at length about the potential of augmented reality that overlays computer graphics onto the real world, saying that the tech could eventually be an everyday device for most people and that its impact could be similar to the invention of the internet.
The broader virtual reality industry has struggled to meet high expectations for the technology. Apple’s VR headset debut comes at a time when the industry is facing significant challenges. Meta, which develops its own virtual reality headsets, announced last week that its latest headset model, Quest 3, would be released later this year.
The Vision Pro is set to be available starting at $3,499 early next year. The launch of the headset has opened up a new era of open competition between Apple and Meta.
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