Apple Introduces the Vision Pro

Apple introduced its Vision Pro headset today:

Apple said the device, which will sell for $3,499 and won’t be available until early next year, would be a new way to interact with digital content in the physical space using the user’s hands, eyes and voice to interact with apps.

Users can control the device with their hands and experience movies, TV shows and games in a more immersive way. [CEO Tim] Cook called it a new “spatial computing” platform...

The Vision Pro can project a massive movie screen into any environment for a user, as well as capture or play three-dimensional video, making it possible for a user to watch a movie on a giant screen or interact with life-size personal photos or videos projected into their living environment.

The $3,499 price will be a barrier to mass adoption. However, thousands of people in the Bay Area alone have room in their budget to buy one. The question is whether the Vision Pro has enough unique and valuable features to cause these buyers to pull the trigger.

WSJ tech reporter Joanna Stern tried it on:

During my 30-minute demo, it weighed down on my nose and made me a bit nauseous. (Apple says these will get better by the time it ships early next year.) But wow…the interface and hand gestures are intuitive, 3-D movies are finally making sense and it really felt like a huge dinosaur broke through a wall right in front of me...

The Vision Pro is different from any other headset I’ve tried because of how easy it is to toggle between seeing the real world and the digital world. An Apple Watch-like Digital Crown on the right brow allows you to control the immersion: To go more virtual, you scroll in one direction; to see more reality, you scroll in the other...

Apple is differentiating itself with an experience that is fully grounded in reality. This is not virtual reality where you escape your surroundings. Instead, it’s all about bringing the digital world to your real world. What Apple calls “spatial computing.”

Like curious others I'll hie me down to the local Apple Store when the demo is available. If the experience is as immersive as some reviewers claim, and if they catch me in a weak moment, who knows what I might do?