Apple Vision Pro: Expensive Toy or a Tool from the Future Available Now?

DISCLAIMER: While I have not yet had the opportunity to try the new Apple Vision Pro VR/AR goggles, it is certainly an interesting piece of technology worth covering. This article is based on numerous video reviews and written posts/articles. If you consider purchasing the device, please conduct your own research.

The price starts from $3499 up to about $4000 with more hard drive memory. Not for an average mortal at this point in time. Both Apple and people who reviewed it call it a "future technology available today". It is understandable why Apple can say things like that, but despite various flaws and deficiencies I see it generally aligns with the opinions of early users that shared their feedback. Btw, it is only available in USA at the moment. Consumers around the world need to wait for broader availability.

Apple, being Apple, does not use VR/AR terminology and refers to it as Spatial Computing. This "ski-goggles looking" device is indeed built around 3D space, where a user can work and enjoy entertainment. It offers fully virtual and extended reality with granular control to blur those worlds.

Why bother?

Some people call it just a fancy, pricey toy. And being an Apple device, it's often seen as overpriced, overhyped marketing, right? However, if you work in any capacity with 3D, your perspective might differ. The possibilities are vast. Entertainment is the obvious use, but at this price point, it's not the sole application. Virtual trainings, spatial monitoring, 3D creation, and more benefit from it. In some fields, even the $3499 price point is justifiable. Plus, thanks to broad MacOS compatibility, the device can also serve as a regular computer to some extent.

Even if you couldn't be convinced to use the device for free, the implications of its development are substantial. These include super high-density displays with unprecedented quality, paired with a new AI-focused branch of chips for processing vast amounts of spatial data in real-time. Add to that best-in-class eye-tracking technology.

As a civilisation, thanks to space exploration efforts, we've gained many technologies now used daily by much of the human population, such as memory foam, water purification systems, and cordless tools. This article isn't about space exploration, but the analogy stands. Whether or not you ever use the Apple Vision Pro, its future versions, or similar products, you will most likely directly or indirectly use a large number of technologies developed for it.

Let's talk about some capabilities and use cases.

Early users claim that the eye-tracking combined with hand gestures is so effective that no mouse or controller is required for many use cases. Obviously, for activities like gaming where interaction speed is crucial, a controller is necessary. The exception is medium to long-form typing. Eye-tracking and gestures work for occasional words, but are inefficient for programming or content writing. Voice dictation and commands can mitigate typing, though they're not always viable, such as in public spaces, or may be inferior for tasks like programming.

Another common observation is that, although the device is technically a standalone head-mounted computer, owning another Apple device significantly enhances its utility. This benefit stems from Apple's often criticised yet highly integrated ecosystem, enabling quick and convenient data and account settings sharing. It's a compounding effect when you own at least two devices compared to just one. As a rule of thumb, if you already own an Apple device and have $3499 to spare, consider purchasing it; otherwise, maybe not.

Something new. Benefits of spatial capabilities.

Let's discuss the spatial aspects and focus on work. Although users report some limitations and areas for improvement, imagine pinning apps, notes, etc., in various places within your real environment. For instance, pinning a shopping list on a fridge door. This approach makes information contextual without cluttering your regular workspace, yet you can "teleport" it in front of you whenever you choose.

If you change rooms or work in an office, you can pin notes and apps exactly where they belong, making context switching natural and fast, and decluttering your space from various contexts all at once.

Show me the money!

Is $3499 pricey? Consider the cost of advanced industrial or medical devices, which can be 10x, 100x, 1000x more expensive. While the Apple Vision Pro is not a direct replacement, it can enable more people to participate in training simultaneously without risking damage to very expensive equipment.

Apple spent years and a fortune developing this new product line. It's relatively uncommon for them to launch such a risky, highly opinionated, and divisive device that, despite its high price, still has much room for improvement.

Let's dive into flaws or current technological limitations.

The phone-sized battery is an external unit connected to the headset by a cable. Far from ideal, especially due to the dangling cable. To make matters worse, it lasts only about 2 hours. However, it can be connected to a power source, mitigating this issue, and users have experimented with larger batteries.

The device's size and weight are concentrated mostly around the eyes. Despite using the best, most expensive materials, physical miniaturisation has its brutal limits. Initially, Apple took a slightly different approach than other VR headset makers, notably with the external battery and how the device is mounted on the head. Close to the release date, Apple promoted a single knitted wide strap, but the final product offers an option for a dual, lighter strap, more akin to competitors' designs. Opinions are split: some prefer the more traditional dual-band strap, while others favour the single knitted one. Both preferences have merit, as head size and shape play significant roles.

The device also features a front display that, depending on the mode, shows the user's eyes as an avatar or indicates immersion mode. This feature is among the worst rated. The clarity is lacking, casting doubt on its value, and it might be one aspect to eliminate in a potential "budget version."

What crazy things people already did?

YouTube views. Some people purchased the device almost exclusively for the views. Whether for views or not, individuals were using it on the metro, planes, walking on streets, indoor climbing, and more. Although the goggles are not physically see-through, numerous high-resolution cameras accurately recreate what a person would see without them. Disregarding safety concerns (like unexpected malfunctions), in theory, individuals wearing them can perform most activities thanks to the cameras.

What can we expect in the near future, several years from now?

We can almost certainly expect future versions of the device: improved models and possibly a budget version as well. As you may know from my other posts and articles, I closely follow the development of AI-powered humanoid robots. Imagine combining the Apple Vision Pro with Tesla's humanoid bot, Optimus Gen 2, for training or precise avatar-like remote control. I'm not saying this is entirely positive, but the physical and digital worlds are merging more than ever before. Discussing these topics with someone just 10 years ago would have sounded like a sci-fi conversation.

NOTE: This article draws upon a range of video and text reviews, primarily from sources such as: Marques Brownlee, Casey Neistat, Andrej Karpathy, DrKnowItAll, Matthew Berman, JerryRigEverything, Meet Kevin, Andrew Edwards, Alex Ziskind, SAMTIME.

However, it does not directly represent the thoughts of these authors, nor is it a straightforward summary. The insights and analyses presented are my own, integrating and reflecting on the information gathered from these reviews.