The annual Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (#WWDC23) took place on bank holiday Monday, and for those who did not tune in, it was an exciting day. Apple unveiled its much-anticipated augmented reality (AR) headset, Vision Pro, which is set to hit the market in 2024. This new product has the potential to change the game in user interfaces and computing, but it is still in its early stages, and it remains to be seen how transformative it will be.
The promotional video for Vision Pro, which can be watched here, is a masterpiece in visual and messaging terms. Apple takes care to choose actors that are ethnically and age-diverse and that are dressed in styles ranging from futuristically stylish to nondescript dad plaid. The video showcases the headset’s spatial computing capabilities and avoids using the possibly alienating term “virtual reality” and never mentions artificial intelligence (AI).
The Vision Pro is a fascinating device that makes some sci-fi concepts a reality. It takes the form of high-end ski goggles mixed with a pinch of uncanny valley, the Minority Report, and a supercharged Oculus headset. Apple aims to position it as a timely, people-focused device in the promotional video, which begs to be deconstructed as it streams. Camera angles zoom out as an actor poses nearly motionless on a couch, nudging you to (eventually) notice her almost imperceptible hand gestures managing the device.
The Vision Pro is not yet ready for public demonstration, much like the last time Apple tried to showcase a live FaceTime call at the Worldwide Developers Conference. This may be an indication that the product is still in the early stages of development and needs more time to be perfected. Alternatively, it may be a marketing strategy by Apple to build anticipation and advanced sales.
Since taking over from Steve Jobs, Apple’s late founder, CEO Tim Cook has never had the chance to launch something truly groundbreaking, as opposed to hyping existing products. The Apple Watch, which has come into its own over time, was one such product, but it was not soul-stirring. The Vision Pro, on the other hand, is a significant departure from Apple’s standard offerings, and it marks a potential new direction for the company.
The Vision Pro is a first, trial, still-clumsy form factor for something transformative coming down the pipeline. It has the potential to reshape assumptions about how to interact with technology, its portability, usability, accessibility, possibility, and how we experience the world. Keyboardless thin touchscreens were originally mind-blowing and, confusing and off-putting to many. In just a decade, they have become so normalised as to be mundane. The Vision Pro may be the first step towards personal technology’s future directions, with shifts that will not require headsets at all.
While the Vision Pro may look like a very cool borderline-magical way of doing things that we can do perfectly well in other ways, such as watching a film, playing games, FaceTiming, using apps, the potential impact is enormous. The device allows people to do things on their own but also to engage with people, even in the same room, with its uncanny valley feature that generates an image of your eyes onto the goggles, making them appear – but aren’t – transparent.
In conclusion, the Vision Pro is an exciting device that could transform the world of computing and user interfaces. It may be too early to say how transformative it will be, but it is a signpost towards personal technology’s future directions and shifts that will not need a headset at all. Talk to us again in a decade.
