Apple unveils upgraded Vision Pro with M5 chip, 120Hz displays

Apple today unveiled an upgraded version of their VR headset. The new Apple Vision Pro features the M5 chip, Dual Knit Band, improved picture quality, and longer battery life.

Let us start with the most essential: There is still no news about a global launch and the price remains the same: a staggering 3500 dollars before tax.

Apple Vision Pro does, however, get a range of upgrades, and the company emphasizes that it have no intention of leaving the headset market. Apple has also just released the visionOS 26 operating system.

- "With the breakthrough performance of M5, the latest Apple Vision Pro delivers faster performance, sharper details throughout the system, and even more battery life, setting a new standard for what's possible in spatial computing," said Bob Borchers, Apple's VP of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Paired with the comfortable Dual Knit Band, innovative features in visionOS 26, and all-new Apple Immersive experiences spanning adventure, documentary, music, and sports, spatial computing is even more capable, entertaining, and magical with the new Vision Pro."

 Læs også: Meta launches its first glasses with a display


M5 chip, improved picture quality
Apple upgrades from the M2 in the old headset to the new M5 chip in the new headet. M5 provides significantly higher CPU and GPU performance across apps and games. This includes hardware-based ray tracing. AI performance is up to 50% higher, according to Apple.

Apple says that M5 also improves image quality, specifically by rendering 10% more pixels on the micro-OLED displays, which appear to be the same as before, with over 4K resolution per eye – 23 million pixels in total. M5 also allows the displays to run up to 120Hz compared to 100Hz in the old model.

 Læs også: Samsung's new XR headset may boast higher-res OLED than Apple Vision Pro

This is some of the best image quality available in a headset, generations ahead of Meta Quest, which are all equipped with standard LCD panels with HD quality. Apple Vision Pro can, among other things, simulate a cinema or screens that feel much, much larger for 2D, 3D and "immersive" movies.


New band, extended battery life
Apple Vision Pro now comes with the Dual Knit Band to support the relatively heavy headset, which is still one of the drawbacks. 

- "The lower strap features flexible fabric ribs embedded with tungsten inserts that provide a counterweight for additional comfort, balance, and stability. And the intuitive dual-function Fit Dial allows users to make fine-tuned adjustments to achieve their ideal fit. The new Dual Knit Band comes in small, medium, and large sizes; is available to purchase separately; and is compatible with the previous-generation Apple Vision Pro," explained Apple.

Battery life has been extended to 3 hours with the bundled battery pack.

There will also soon be an Apple Vision Pro app for iPad, from which users can control parts of the headset and queue new games for download.


Netflix and YouTube missing
Apple claims there are over 1 million apps for Apple Vision, although this includes iPad apps. Only 3000 apps are built specifically for visionOS – Netflix and YouTube are still missing.

Some apps have 'environments', for example Disney's Star Wars and HBO Max's Hogwarts, allowing you to watch movies far from home – even on the moon. Next year, the first live sports broadcasts recorded in VR format will arrive. The Apple TV app offers over 300 movies in 3D format. There are also new new 'immersive' titles coming soon.

For gaming, you get 4K HDR and spatial audio. Most games are still run on a flat virtual screen rather than in a fully immersive VR environment. Support for PlayStation VR2 controllers was recently added.

FlatpanelsHD has tried Apple Vision Pro and it is an amazing experience that gives several hints about the future of entertainment. We went as far as to call it a video revolution.

You can also view 'spatial' images and videos, and virtualize a lots of screens in your surroundings for work. In addition, you can mirror your Mac screen.


Still limited to a few regions
The new Apple Vision Pro launches on October 22 in Australia, Canada, mainland China, Hong Kong, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore, UAE, United Kingdom and USA.

The next two countries in line are South Korea and Taiwan. There is no word on global availability.

Apple Vision Pro still starts at 3500 dollars with 256GB of storage.

Apple Vision Pro – specifications
Capacity
256GB
512GB
1TB

Display
23 million pixels
3D display system
Micro‑OLED
7.5‑micron pixel pitch
92% DCI‑P3
Supported refresh rates: 90Hz, 96Hz, 100Hz, 120Hz
Supports playback multiples of 24 fps and 30 fps for judder‑free video

Chips
Apple M5 chip
10‑core CPU with 4 performance cores and 6 efficiency cores
10‑core GPU
Neural Accelerators
Hardware‑accelerated ray tracing
16‑core Neural Engine
153GB/s memory bandwidth

Apple R1 chip
12‑millisecond photon‑to‑photon latency
256GB/s memory bandwidth

Camera
Stereoscopic 3D main camera system
Spatial photo and video capture
18 mm, ƒ/2.00 aperture
6.5 stereo megapixels

Sensorer
Two high‑resolution main cameras
Six world‑facing tracking cameras
Four eye‑tracking cameras
TrueDepth camera
LiDAR Scanner
Four inertial measurement units (IMUs)
Flicker sensor
Ambient light sensor

Audio and Video
Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking
Personalized Spatial Audio and audio ray tracing
Six‑mic array with directional beamforming
Supports H2‑to‑H2 ultra‑low‑latency connection to AirPods Pro 2 with USB‑C, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Audio Playback
Supported formats include AAC, MP3, Apple Lossless, FLAC, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, and Dolby Atmos

Video Playback
Supported formats include HEVC, MV‑HEVC, H.264, HDR with Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HLG

Battery
Up to 2.5 hours of general use
Video playback up to 3 hours
Apple Vision Pro can be used while charging the battery

Connectivity and Wireless
Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth 5.3

Operating System
visionOS 26

Device Weight
26.4–28.2 ounces (750–800 grams)
 FlatpanelsHD