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Two months after starting to use the Apple Vision Pro, it hasn’t changed the way I live. It hasn’t replaced my TV, and it doesn’t make me want to give up powerful desktops or slim laptops. It’s just another tool in my arsenal — one I can use to keep track of it X-Men ’97 In bed, or to help me delve into research while I’m away from my desk. The Vision Pro becomes mundane so quickly, it’s almost easy to forget how groundbreaking it actually is. Their displays are still absolutely stunning, and Apple’s combination of eye tracking and gesture controls makes for the most intuitive AR/VR interface I’ve seen yet.
While the Vision Pro is still something most people shouldn’t even consider buying, Apple has rolled out some key items for early adopters. There are more games appearing on the App Store and Arcade every week, and there are A handful of 3D movies Offered to Apple TV+ subscribers. the Add spatial characters It also goes a long way toward making the Vision Pro more than just Telepresence device (more on that below). But we’re still waiting for the company to deliver on its promise of immersive 180-degree video, as well as allowing users to create high-quality spatial videos on iPhones.
How do I use Apple Vision Pro
Once the stress of reviewing every aspect of Vision Pro was over, I began integrating it into my life as a regular user. (Full disclosure: I returned the unit I originally purchased, but Apple sent me a sample for further testing.) This mostly means not forcing myself to use the headphones for large periods of the day. Instead, the time I spend in the Vision Pro is more goal-driven: I put it on in the morning and expose my MacBook screen to scan emails and catch up on Slack conversations, all while actually projecting a YouTube video onto my wall.
In the middle of a work session, or sometimes before diving into a busy workday, I do a five or ten-minute meditation session using a mindfulness app. I can easily meditate without any headgear, but I found the app’s calming narration and the immersive environment it creates (since it completely blocks out the real world) to be incredibly helpful. It’s like having your own yoga teacher on staff, ready to help calm your mind whenever you have a spare moment.
I’ve also learned to appreciate Vision Pro as a way to expand where I can get work done. As someone who has primarily worked from home since 2009, I learned early on that changing locations was an easy way to stay engaged. I try not to write in the same place where I would check my email in the morning, for example. I usually switch between my desktop computer and the big monitor (currently a 32-inch Alienware 4K OLED monitor) in my office, and a MacBook Air or Pro for writing around the house. Sometimes I go to a park or a nearby coffee shop when I need to focus on a writing assignment for several hours.
With the Vision Pro, I can actually handle some serious multitasking from the deck or kitchen without being tethered to a desktop computer. I’ve found this useful for covering events to avoid getting stuck inside my basement office (I can stream video to a virtual window, as well as open Slack and web browsers via my predictable MacBook). I made conference calls while sick in bed with the Vision Pro, because it felt more relaxing than staring at a small laptop screen.
I still haven’t traveled much with the headset, but I can expect it will come in handy next time I take a weekend trip with my family. Tested Norman Chan He told me he used the Vision Pro on long flights, where it makes working hours disappear. I’m still working on that — I prefer to use a small laptop and headphones on planes, but I can imagine the beauty of watching big-screen movies on the Vision Pro while everyone else stares at tablets or cramped seat-back screens.
The Vision Pro remains a great way to watch movies or TV shows at home, too. When I’m too tired to come downstairs after my kids are asleep, I sometimes lie in bed while projecting YouTube videos or cartoons onto the ceiling. This is where I experienced a triple time shift while watching X-Men ’97: As soon as the reworked theme song came on, I immediately went back to watching the original show on the 13-inch TV in my childhood bedroom. If I could somehow go back to the past, bishopLikewise, it would be impossible to convince my 10-year-old self that I would eventually watch a sequel series in a future headset, displayed in a 200-inch window. How far we have come.
Spatial characters are a telepresence dream
When Apple first announced the Vision Pro last year, I couldn’t help but feel intimidated by its personal avatars. They looked cold and inhuman, the same thing you’d imagine of soulless digital clones. The VisionOS 1.1 update made them a bit less annoying, but I didn’t really like avatars until Apple unveiled spatial characters last week. Instead of being confined to a window, spatial characters hover in your virtual space, allowing you to collaborate with friends as if they were right next to you.
The concept isn’t exactly new: I tested Microsoft Mesh a few years ago with a HoloLens 2 headset, which also brought digital avatars into a home office. But they looked more like basic Miis from the Nintendo Wii than anything realistic. Meta’s Horizon Workrooms did something similar in entirely virtual spaces, but that’s not as impressive as collaborating digitally on top of a real-world view.
Apple’s spatial personas are much more compelling than Microsoft and Meta’s efforts because they’re easy to set up — all you have to do is turn on spatial mode during a FaceTime conversation — and feel effortlessly organic. During a personal spatial call with Norm from TestedWe were talking as if he were sitting in front of me in a home theater. We were able to draw and write together in the Freeform app with ease — when I stood up and reached for the drawing board, it was as if we were standing next to each other on a real whiteboard.
SharePlay with spatial characters
We were also able to customize our viewing experiences while watching a few of them Star Trek Beyond Together with SharePlay in Vision Pro. Norm chose to watch it in 2D, I watched it in 3D, and our progress was in sync. The experience felt more exciting than the typical SharePlay experience, as I could lean on it and chat with it instead of typing a message or saying something over a FaceTime call. I can also only imagine how easy it would be to record movie commentary for podcasts using spatial characters. (We’ll have to use separate microphones and computers, as well as Vision Pros, but that would make a recording session more comfortable than following movies on a monitor or TV.)
Unfortunately, our attempts to play games together failed, because we were running slightly different versions of Games room. We also didn’t have enough time during our session to sync our apps. I was finally able to try out a game of chess and battleship with other Vision Pro-equipped friends, and once again, it felt like they were actually playing alongside me. (Norm W CNET Scott Stein also looked like they were Having a ball with virtual chess.)
Of course, the main drawback for Spatial figures is that they require a $3,500 headset. Apple is laying the groundwork for really great telepresence experiences, but it won’t matter to most people until they can actually buy a Vision Pro or a cheaper headset from Apple in the future.
With Horizon Workrooms, Meta allowed non-VR users to join virtual meetings using Messenger on phones and computers, so they wouldn’t be left out. Standard FaceTime users can also join Vision Pro conversations alongside spatial characters, but they’ll still be stuck in the window. And unlike the Meta view, regular users won’t be able to see any virtual environments (although you can still collaborate in certain apps like FreeForm). The Meta’s big advantage over Apple was capacity: Horizon Workrooms supports up to 16 people in VR, plus another 34 connections from other devices. On the other hand, spatial personal chats are limited to five participants.
There is no momentum for immersive video
Apple’s sweeping 180-degree video format was one of the most impressive aspects of the Vision Pro when I previewed it last year, and the range of experiences at launch was pretty compelling. But the immersive video channel has been dry since launch — the only new experience was a five-minute short on the 2023 NFL playoffs, which was mostly disappointing.
While this short clip had so much precision and depth that it felt like I was actually on the pitch, the MLS experience was disorienting because it cut too much, and with no sense of rhythm. Once you’ve settled into a scene, perhaps watching someone prepare for a specific target, the camera view changes and you’ll have no idea where you are. It’s almost like a five-minute lesson on what not to do with comprehensive video. Hopefully MLS will have more experience in business.
I don’t expect a tsunami of immersive video content, since the Vision Pro is still an obscenely expensive device intended for developers and professionals, but it would be nice to see more of a push from Apple. The company raises Another six-minute episode of a prehistoric planet Later this month, but again that’s not really much. Where are content creators pushing immersive video to new heights? Although the content will likely be difficult to get to grips with since it was shot in 3D and 8K, the format could be a perfect way for Apple to extol the virtues of its new chips.
Instead of more immersive videos, I’m spending more time rewatching spatial videos captured with my iPhone 15 Pro. It still looks more realistic than 2D clips, but I’ve come to hate the limits of 1080p/30fps. It’s hard to accept this decision when I know that my phone can also produce crisp 4K 60fps footage. The $3 Spatialify app helps somewhat by unlocking 1080p/60fps and 4K/30fps spatial video capture, but its footage is also shakier and buggy than the iPhone’s built-in camera. At this point, I’ll consider using Spatialify if my phone is on a tripod or gimbal, but otherwise I’ll stick with the native camera app.
What’s next for Apple Vision Pro?
We’ll likely have to wait until Apple’s WWDC 24 event in June before we hear about any other major upgrades to the Vision Pro or VisionOS system. That would be fitting, since last year’s WWDC was the headphones’ big debut (and a hellish day for us trying to cover all the news). Now that the devices are ready to use, Apple has to convince developers that it’s worth building Vision Pro apps alongside the usual iOS, iPadOS, and macOS tools. It’s not just a legendary spatial computing platform anymore.
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