Apple Vision Pro – Guided Tour

Nothing presented here or at the WWDC keynote makes me eager to pick this device up. The 180k+ units sold seem more tied to its status as a symbol rather than a compelling innovation. The only killer feature is the 4k per eye resolution.

What I've seen here is basically apps in a box at the same distance and size of roughly a 100" TV. What I really wanted to see out of the headset which I don't see is:

1. "pass through" mode of a physical keyboard and mouse into the virtual world

2. apps leveraging more use of the real estate provided by 180 degree+ FOV

3. apps using depth perception

For instance, a showcase of Final Cut Pro featuring the timeline prominently in focus "closer" to the user, the monitor showing the preview at far distance, in mid-range depth the scopes for color grading and to the immediate peripheries the media library and inspector.

The eye movement for UI focus and the pinch-to-interact coordination don't feel very intuitive to me. And based on what The Verge is reporting it just looks unnatural. [1]

What sold me on the Quest 3 was AR painting with Gravity Sketch. [2] Using the controllers it felt natural. There are hints that Gravity Sketch might make its way to Vision Pro. [3] However, I'm skeptical about how intuitive and precise it could be without handheld controllers like the ones on the Quest 3. It seems like Apple might be following a pattern similar to what they did with the stylus – initially dismissing its necessity, only to backtrack later on.

Nonetheless excited to test it out firsthand at an Apple Store.

[1] https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/8/23753618/apple-vision-pro-...

[2] https://www.meta.com/experiences/1587090851394426/

[3] https://mixed-news.com/en/gravity-sketch-update-apple-vision...