Apple packed a lot of hardware into its new device Vision Pro Headset, including high-precision optics, more than a dozen sensors and a pair of Apple-designed processors. Here’s a look at the technology that’s making the new augmented reality device tick.
Vision Pro operating system software, called Vision OSIt runs on the same M2 processor that Apple uses in its Macs, the company said on its site WWDC Developers Conference Monday. But to handle all the sensor data, Apple designed a companion chip, the R1.
“It processes input from 12 cameras, five sensors, and six microphones,” said Mike Rockwell, Apple’s head of Technology Development Group. “The processing quickly reduces the latency between head movement and the corresponding change in the field of view of the screen to just 12 milliseconds, about one-eighth the eye contact time.” Low screen latency is crucial to avoid the nausea experienced by some VR and AR headset wearers.
Premium electronics have a cost. Apple said the Vision Pro will cost $3,499 (about £2,815 or AU$5,290 converted) when it ships in early 2024.
But with the Vision Pro, Apple is betting that a premium experience is necessary to overcome the hurdles that have kept VR and AR headsets out of the mainstream until now. Budget headphones from Meta Other competitors have so far failed to entice many people with VR and AR promises like immersive gaming and video, web browsing and word processing with giant virtual computer screens, and video conferencing with life-size companions.
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However, the price won’t give you everything. Although most of the headset’s electronics are built-in, they are limited by a cord to an external battery pack.
Vision Pro optics and displays
Presentation is a major component of the experience. VR headsets have a narrow field of view and limited pixelated images, but Apple is trying to offer something more immersive.
The Vision Pro has two postage stamp-sized displays, one for each eye. But three lenses extend it to a wider field of view while maintaining sharpness and color.
“It enables true 4K video display with wide color and high dynamic range, all on a massive scale,” Rockwell said. “Good text looks crystal clear from any angle.”
Reality Pro has a traditional camera that allows you to take pictures. But it also lets others track what’s going on around you for augmented reality views of your home, office or airplane seat. And cameras that point down your hands track the finger gestures that let you select objects and press buttons.
To see which parts of the screen you’re focusing on, eye-tracking hardware inside the headset tracks your gaze, illuminating your pupils with infrared light. Eye tracking information is not shared with developers of websites or apps that give this information, as it can reveal more interesting or more important things on the screen.
Although the Vision Pro is opaque, it has a separate outward-facing screen that shows your eyes to people looking at you when you’re wearing the headset. feature, called sightYou can also show a little bit about what you’re up to, adding a blue tint when using an app or a white flash when taking a photo.
They are all very complex and very expensive and are unlikely to sell for anything like the amount of smartwatches, let alone smartphones. But in electronics, costs often fall as technical expertise and manufacturing scale increase. Apple CEO Tim Cook called the Vision Pro “the beginning of a journey.” Perhaps the non-Pro Apple Vision or Apple Vision 2 Pro will attract more buyers.
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