Apple’s headset is finally here — should news publishers care?
Product & Tech Initiative Blog | 13 June 2023
Everything was abuzz at the Apple WWDC recently because they finally announced their headset: Apple Vision Pro.
Don’t yawn just yet. It’s Apple, they take their time but they get things right.
Here are some things that make this different from any other headsets on the market right now.
You didn’t hear the word metaverse once during the announcement. They made it all about “spatial computing,” which is bringing what we do now into a different environment. Every application was something I could relate to something I do now, only better. And frankly I am ready for something other than this rectangle screen that we all stare at all day long.
In fact there is seamless integration with other apple devices. You can connect to your MacBook just by looking at it.
It’s AR led, not VR, which means you can see the environment and people around you, and they can see you. It’s integrated into this world, not a fictional one (unless that’s what you opt for). It’s more like talking to someone with semi-transparent ski goggles than a clunky opaque headset.
And there is a camera on the front so you can use it to capture photos and videos from the world around you. The audio looks to be spectacular and is directional straight into your ear.
When using the headset, you don’t need additional handheld devices. Everything is operated by eyes, hand motion, or touch of a button on the headset.
The battery is separate. OK this could be seen as negative, but I think it’s a plus, at least for now, because it means the device sitting on your face doesn’t feel unnecessarily heavy. We’ll see whether having an iPhone size battery sitting in your pocket feels (it’s attached by a wire), but I suspect this won’t be as big of a pain as we think it is.
Maybe a small thing but it shouldn’t be underestimated that the headset is a modular system, which means you can remove the headband and the section that attaches to your face. I’m not a clean freak, but my Oculus is likely revolting as it’s been worn by multiple people over the past couple of years. And because the device is heavy, you sweat more (the more I think about this, the less desire I have to put that headset back on my face!). Apple has solved this problem by being able to detach the wearable parts.
In fact what made me happy watching this is that they have solved a lot of the problems we have seen with headsets that have launched to date. They’ve looked at the user problems and found pretty elegant solutions. This is the epitome of product thinking.
Do you need to do anything right now? No, this is a US$3,500 headset that isn’t coming out until next year.
Why on earth am I writing about it now? Because it’s a new era of computing: spatial computing. This is the kind of thing people will use every day, and that’s something we should have on the horizon. Plus it’s kind of fun ;)
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