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What do you think about Apple's new headset?
Apple finally dropped the rumoured headset it's been working on at yesterday's WWDC. It's called the Vision Pro and it will sell for just about $3500.
I thought it looked super impressive at the event, but it seems like the ship has kind of sailed in the whole virtual / augmented headset especially if you're entering at that price point, I'm probably wrong though.
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@rrhoover I think it looks cool! I’m wondering if it will have the AirPods effect on a smaller scale. Used to be ugly now a fashion statement lmao
@rrhoover I'd hope that with the way the battery has been designed it's hot swappable so you could swap it out while using it.
Could be frustrating if you have to shut down the device between swapping batteries 😅
It looks pretty, but to be expected from Apple.
Personally, I am not a fan of this level of wearable tech.
I think I will wait for holographic displays to become a reality...
@john_carmichael Ultimately that's where I sit also, I love tech but I don't care to wear tech really, not this level anyway. I want less tech in my life most of the time
@john_carmichael I agree. I bought the oculus quest the other year. I used it initially at first but then don't even use it nowadays and I put it down to having to wear the headset. Similar to how 3d TV's have never really taken off. I think if we can overcome the obstacle of wearing a headset then it might take off until then I think it will be just a fad.
yup, it's the same with most wearable tech. I had a smart watch for about a month.. it cost about 300, but after about 3 weeks, it was like all the other watches I had owned... not worn. I think some people enjoy wearing watches and that a portion of those people will adopt these vr/ar headsets (and any wearable tech). Also on the smart watch... when I took that thing off and stopped thinking about my heart rate, step count etc, I think my life got a little less stressful 😅
But... then there's the value; everything I can/ want to do on a vr set I can do on my phone or laptop. so the only gain is its another peice of kit to achieve the same value... but this bit of kit makes you look like a spaceman and is even more antisocial that the smartphone.
You could go a step further and say the launch of this is not optimal timing... the world is experiencing digital fatigue, just endured covid... do people want another thing to detach them from the real world?
@aaronoleary How the hell can you say just $3500? I'm from India, $3500 in Indian Rupees is 2,89,207.45 Indian Rupee. No one in India would be interested in buying this. Instead of this, people in India can afford Meta Oculus Quest 2, which is just ₹46,979.00 or $568.44, and it is a excellent headset in the VR space in this price point.
@aaronoleary @abhishek_jha14 v1 is certainly not marketed for India let alone most US consumers.
@aaronoleary @rrhoover v1 is not marketed for India, but Apple is such a company, which is constantly developing its products. And if there is a v2 after v1 success, it may be more expensive and may not be very popular in the Indian population.
@abhishek_jha14 I’m not saying “just” as in its a small price to pay I’m saying “just about” as an expression for an approximation of the price instead of going down to the decimal.
I don’t think most people anywhere could afford to drop that much on this device without some serious consideration atleast.
@aaronoleary First, sorry I misunderstood your words and I take back my words. And yes, I agree that most people anywhere could afford to buy this without serious consideration.
@abhishek_jha14 all good! I need to be wary of using expressions that might not be obvious to everyone anyway.
For sure it’s such a steep price. Should encourage competition to make similar pieces for cheaper though!
I have 2 ways how I can imagen using it. 1st is to extend my Macbook Pro and work on 2-3 monitor mods and the 2nd is to watch movies. Both cases when I'm not at home. But right now I couldn't imagine myself wearing a VR headset in the coffee shop.
I'm really hoping that future iterations will take a Mac-like approach to meeting different technical needs and pricepoints (Mini, Pro, Studio etc.).
Also really hoping that it lives up to the claims that the R1 chip will tackle motion sickness, that's one of the biggest blockers for me with the original Quest I've got, I get the worst headaches 🫠
@aaronoleary I think that starting a discussion is a much better place to celebrate apples headset reveal over launching a brand new product. Overall I don’t know who they are targeting at such a price point, maybe researchers and universities.
@laynetoo Yeah I could and am likely very wrong, to me it just seems like the excitement for VR/AR stuff is died down, but also Apple make their own hype and this seems more than what has been offered.
@aaronoleary I think this will change everything! Meta is actually coming out with a meta quest 3. Oh the timing ha / can’t compare of course
@aaronoleary the 3 will not compare to this. I am dying to try apple! The augmented reality is incredible
@aaronoleary Yes I agree with your point. I feel the same way.
In my opinion, It is because none of the VR machines show proper UX for productivity except for fun things like gaming.
Meta was the same, it tried to show some metaverse with VR.
When Oculus shows its very first demo for AR, People imagine something really useful ux with its VR/AR Headset.
Apple headset seems like fulfill this expectation by bringing OS onto its headset. Devs/People can build things on there.
It just reminds me of when there were plenty of PDA machines and none of them were truly useful for everyone, then Apple launched iPhone.
At that time, iOS was truly a game changer too not only iPhone hardware itself
I believe that AR displays will need to have the form-factor of sunglasses to be an all-day, every-day device. This is still too bulky and expensive to be an market device, however it is still groundbreaking as a potential entertainment and productivity tool. The brightness and resolution are unmatched and the gesture/eye tracking is supposedly solid. Does anyone know for certain technology is behind the "postage sized displays elements" in the display and if it is microLED? Apple has been investing in microLED since buying LuxVue 9 years ago and it has long been speculated that this AR display would be the target release. https://www.pcgamer.com/apple-ow...
@val_jones I absolutely agree....the headset has to get down to Jordy Laforge's at max...sunglasses-light would be better. I can't see it working at mass market like the iPhone, but that's not to say it won't be awesome in its own niche.
I think it's absolutely fantastic. It's a first generation Apple product, do you remember the very first iPod? And the first iPhone? It didn't even have copy/paste!
If you think about how much those devices have progressed, then I can only imagine what a Vision 4 could do.
Already it looks like it gives an amazing experience. It's too expensive for now for mass adoption, which makes me wonder if Apple will repeat what they did with the iPhone with carriers. Consumers being able to get a pricey phone through a contract and without having to buy it upfront pushed the iPhone adoption like crazy.
Pros I like:
Finally have multiple screens when traveling👍
Movie theater size TV anywhere sounds cool, but idk might end up kind of gimmicky irl👌
Cons I see:
It’s hella expensive💸
Can’t watch TV with more than one person if they don't have it🥲
I think the whole FaceTime avatar thing is weird🥴
Most movies are longer than its battery life😂
Overall I want this thing to succeed, that way more developers will be making apps for it and more resources will be going to improving it, so we actually do get this like seamless, almost invisible, like headset that we’ve all been imagining faster…
I think it's a game-changer! But I would like to test it, because with other helmets (oculus or PS VR) I got nauseous after some time, if Apple fixes this issue, I think I need to start saving from now... Also, I'm curious about battery life...
I think it will be very hard to adapt these headsets because of the size and mobility. I believe, at some point, seeing digital things in real life will probably cause new mental and physical problems. It looks cool and exciting, I would love to try once but I don't think I would use it consistently.
From my experience as a wearable developer, this product form factor will not work for the mass market or any regular casual/professional applications, or even high end engineering applications where you need to see products in 3D in space. People don't like to wear VR helmets for a variety of ergonomic, fashion and functionality reasons, and that's why it's failed as a concept for all but gaming and X-rated applications.
So one inherent problem with the product, price aside, is that Apple has historically been soft on gaming, lacking the key AAA game developers that develop for Microsoft and Sony platforms. If this had been suggested to be primarily a gaming device, and they showed someone playing immersive Grand Theft Auto or similar popular title, I think it would have been received better and there would be some slim market for it among well-heeled gamers, techies and streamers.
For entertainment, well that's out too, because you're limited to movies that are exactly 120 min or less, and unless you're alone you'll want to communicate with or touch the people you're watching with, which becomes a lot harder when you're both wearing helmets. People also like to be comfortable during their leisure time, so wearing a few pounds of tech on your head is not ideal.
For work applications, the first generation of this product at least will not have the control schema necessary to be able to work even half as rapidly as you can on a computer, because the spatial controls will most likely not be precise enough to match the fine control of a mouse, and as you may know a keyboard is not so easily replaced with voice control in all scenarios. Also it looks like it's based on ipad OS not Mac OS, so you'll lack the functionality of a desktop computer. That might be OK for certain people, like for example I went through college using an iPad as my primary device. But why use this over an iPad that you can carry with you anywhere, that has a battery that lasts 5-10x longer, and costs 1/10th of this?
Many consumers don't even like to wear headphones in their ears, they tell me that all the time, which is why they like our audio glasses. So I think that as a platform, bulky head mounted displays are a non-starter for like 97% of the population.
In my view based on my experience working in smartglasses, for an AR/MR smart eyewear product to justify this price tag and/or achieve mass market adoption, it needs to meet the following criteria:
-A form factor that is similar to traditional eyeglasses, that can be worn anywhere without undue attention
-A battery life that can power smart features for all or most of the day.
-Weigh around 1-2 ounces to be comfortable enough to wear all day and not cause neck strain.
-Any virtual displays need to be binocular and extensively tested for eye strain and macular degeneration
-Prescription adaptation at a reasonable price is a must since 2/3 of the US needs vision correction
-Functionality that nearly perfectly matches or surpasses the abilities of a smartphone
-Sufficient MR features that the interaction of virtual objects and the environment is exciting or useful enough to attract the user away from the 2D devices they are accustomed to and make the "magic leap" into an HMD user.
We were genuinely concerned that we would be competing with Apple to popularize smartglasses, but this is a very unexciting and uninspired product, out of financial reach for almost all consumers. Sadly for the Apple fans out there, this will not be an evolved replacement for your eyeglasses, which is what a great smartglass should be.
@harrison_gross I second your opinion & points. Apple has done few mistakes here. Even the stylish Google Glasses failed so its a late entry into an already failed market, priced quite high. People today are health conscious, Apple watch worked as it provided a health App & fitness features & it also looked stylish. But I feel this is just the opposite of Apple watch.
I would like to see some research on how it would impact to our eyes/vision.
More harmful than digital screens or less, not sure yet).
I’m definitely excited, but at that price I hope there has been some thought put into future proofing them
😮 It's like stepping into a whole new dimension of technology and immersing yourself in a mind-bending experience. But let's be real, price-wise, it's definitely on the expensive side. And not everyone might be ready to dive into this VR reality just yet. Let's see how it unfolds!
After watching WWDC23, going back to work on my computer I was like: "damn, a laptop with a 2D screen looks boring now" ahah.
It's a game changer. Apple is making laptop / desktop obsolete basically, moving the digital from 2D to 3D aka 'spatial'. Most people compare it with Oculus, or any other VR headset. Apple provides both the device, and create a whole new environment for it - what other players can't do, having either the hardware (Quest) or the vision (Meta). It's not comparable to iPad, iWatch, or anything - it's a brand new line of product that might even replace laptops.
Of course it's not gonna happen in a year time, like the iPhone was not as popular as of now when it has first been launched. But I deeply believed they just created something transformative, looking forward to see where it brings us 👀
I think it's really cool and will introduce a lot of new ways to interact with technology but with a price point of approximately $3500, it might be hard to get that over a MacBook Pro.
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