Apple has officially revealed their augmented reality headset. The Apple Vision Pro changes the conventional way of using AR headsets by removing physical constraints. Menus are controlled by looking at them via eye tracking, as well as voice commands and hand tracking. Apple continued separating itself from other headsets on the market by giving the wearer the ability to toggle between augmented reality and full virtual reality via a dial. This is ground-breaking to say the least.
Most people may like being in a virtual environment, but most still want to know that they can, at least, see what’s real. Having the convenience of quickly swapping between one world versus another is a benefit that is not currently on the market.
Its glass, ski-goggle like visor is housed in an aluminum frame containing 12 cameras along with 5 displays, and according to Apple, displays video in 4K. An external battery supplies up to two hours of battery life, and Bluetooth connectivity allows the user to use their Mac with the Vision Pro.
Apple calls the device’s display system “EyeSight,” which allows full transparency and your eyes to be visible during AR, but if toggled to full VR, your eyes will be obscured to let people know you are unavailable. The Vision Pro will support video calling through FaceTime, and most interestingly, will allow you to “relive” 3D video that the device has captured. Apple says that the headset will launch with full support for Disney+ and arcade.
The Apple Vision Pro will retail for $3,499 with a 2024 early release.
You can see the full keynote here: https://www.apple.com/apple-events/
