Apple Vision Pro: Impressive Features and Trade-Offs
TLDR; The Apple Vision Pro is a VR headset with impressive hardware, video pass-through, hand and eye tracking, and spatial videos, but it has trade-offs including weight, limited field of view, and imperfect AR features.
💡 Introduction to Apple Vision Pro
The Apple Vision Pro is Apple's entry into the world of wearable computers, starting at $3,499.
It is positioned as the beginning of spatial computing, allowing the running of apps all around the user, and is described as a VR headset despite Apple's insistence on focusing more on AR.
The headset is a full-fledged computer with real apps, representing a series of big trade-offs and design compromises.
🕶️ Features of Apple Vision Pro
The Vision Pro is a VR headset with excellent spatial tracking, a stunning hardware build, and a front display that reflects a different reality.
It is heavier than other headsets due to the external battery, and offers the ability to use custom Zeiss lens inserts for people with glasses.
The speakers provide convincing spatial audio but can be loud for those around the user.
👀 Displays & Field of View
The microOLED displays offer high resolution, but the field of view is smaller than some competitors, with noticeable color fringing and distortion around the edges.
The display's quality is impressive, but there are limitations and trade-offs, with the device constantly reminding the user that they are looking at video on screens.
🤖 Video Passthrough & Latency
Video pass-through on the Vision Pro is convincing, with incredibly low latency and excellent real-time processing of high-resolution video.
However, the device still exhibits motion blur, exposure issues, and limited color reproduction, reminding the user that they are viewing video on screens.
👥 Personas & FaceTime Calls
Personas, a feature that creates a 3D model of the user's face and head, is in beta and still being tuned by Apple.
During a FaceTime call with friends, the 3D model appeared cartoonish and the spatial audio was described as helpful but with limitations.
👁️ Eye Tracking
The hand and eye tracking control system, Optic ID, is considered a superpower at first but can become distracting and make using the device harder over time.
The hand and eye tracking have limitations, and the input mechanism feels less seamless than traditional systems.
🪀 VisionOS & Window Management
Vision Pro runs on visionOS, which is based on iPad OS but with free-floating window chaos and limited window management tools.
The system allows running multiple apps from different operating systems, but the lack of window management tools makes it overwhelming and requires more attention to manage.
🖥️ Secondary Mac Display
Using the Vision Pro as a Mac display works well, but it only supports a single Mac display in visionOS, which may disappoint some users.
🎥 Spatial Videos
The feature of taking spatial videos on an iPhone 15 Pro Max and watching them on the Vision Pro is considered bittersweet, as it offers a solitary experience and limited resolution options.
📷 Camera Quality
The Vision Pro's single press shutter button captures 2560 by 2560 still images, roughly 6.5 megapixels.
The photos are from the left main camera with an 18mm F2.0 lens and appear low quality due to the small camera sensor optimized for video.
The 2200 by 2200 square videos at 30 frames per second look slightly better, but still have noticeable compression and barrel distortion when viewed on other devices.
The device also captures excess motion from head movements, making it impractical for everyday use.
🔋 Conclusion
The Vision Pro is hailed as an impressive product that only Apple could create, leveraging its ecosystem and resources.
However, it inadvertently reveals some flawed ideas that may never be executed well enough to become mainstream.
For instance, VR headsets with camera mixed reality pass through and replacing input devices with hand and eye tracking might be a dead end.
The device is described as having a lot of technology that works like magic until it doesn't, possibly hinting at the limitations of current technology in achieving certain goals.
💻 Simulator for Future Hardware
The Vision Pro is seen as a possible precursor or simulator for future hardware yet to come, such as true AR glasses.
It's suggested that the device represents a trade-off, where Apple ships the current hardware to stimulate interest in certain ideas while directing resources into developing the desired hardware for the future.
This perspective offers a speculative and forward-looking view of the Vision Pro's purpose and potential impact on future products.
🤔 Trade-Offs and Limitations
The reviewer emphasizes the significant trade-offs and limitations of the Vision Pro, questioning the practicality of using a computer that messes up one's hair, restricts picture-taking, and limits sharing of experiences.
Other concerns include short battery life, limited functionality in low-light conditions, and the inherently solitary nature of the experience.
The overall sentiment is that the trade-offs of using the Vision Pro may outweigh its benefits, especially for collaborative work and social interaction.
👥 Lonely Experience
Using the Vision Pro is described as a lonely experience, wherein the user has experiences that no one else can participate in.
This is contrasted with traditional VR headsets, which have primarily become single-use game consoles.
The reviewer finds the solitary nature of the Vision Pro's experience to be more peculiar for a primary computing device, reflecting on the importance of collaborative work and social interaction in everyday computing.
🔮 Future Possibilities
The Vision Pro is regarded as a glimpse of the potential future of spatial computing if the significant trade-offs and limitations are resolved.
Despite the current limitations, there is optimism about the potential for spatial computing to deliver entirely new kinds of experiences.
However, in its current state, the Vision Pro's trade-offs may not justify its use, particularly for collaborative and social activities.
⚖️ Everyday Use
The reviewer highlights the impracticality of using the Vision Pro for everyday activities, as evidenced by a humorous exchange about wearing the device for an extended period.
The conversation humorously illustrates the concerns about the device's impact on daily life, including physical discomfort, limited movement, and the challenge of performing ordinary tasks while wearing the headset.