At WWDC 23, Apple announced its vision for AR/VR with a new operating system and headset with micro-OLED that can simulate a giant screen for movies and games. It costs 3500 dollars.

- "With Vision Pro, you're no longer limited by a display," said Tim Cook, Apple CEO, when he introduced the headset on stage.




Apple Vision Pro mixes the real world with the virtual world, which is so-called mixed reality (MR), but the headset also delivers VR (virtual reality) where you enter a fully virtual world.

The digital 3D world and user interface is controlled with your eyes, hands and voice. For example, you can open an app by virtually pressing it with your finger and you can browse by flicking your wrist.

- "Today marks the beginning of a new era for computing," said Tim Cook. "Just as the Mac introduced us to personal computing, and iPhone introduced us to mobile computing, Apple Vision Pro introduces us to spatial computing. Built upon decades of Apple innovation, Vision Pro is years ahead and unlike anything created before — with a revolutionary new input system and thousands of groundbreaking innovations. It unlocks incredible experiences for our users and exciting new opportunities for our developers."


Micro-OLED displays
The headset is equipped with two micro-OLED displays that together feature over 23 million pixels. The displays support HDR (High Dynamic Range) and deliver the picture quality you know from OLED TVs.

On top of that comes a ton of sensors and not least a screen on the outside that can show your eyes to the outside world when people are nearby.


 Apple Vision Pro has a screen on the outside so that others can still see you

In terms of audio, Apple Vision Pro utilizes audio ray-tracing that measures the paths of sounds in the environment around you. Sound is recreated in spatial audio inside Vision Pro, which is calibrated to the user's ear shapes using the camera on an iPhone.

The band around the head can be replaced.

The headset is powered by a combination of the M2 chip and a new R1 chip, which takes care of all sensor input from 12 cameras, 5 sensors and 6 microphones. R1 delivers images to the two displays within 12 milliseconds.


 Apple Vision Pro is powered by both M2 and R1

 A range of technologies deliver video and lyd

A huge screen anywhere
One of the experiences that Apple highlighted is a large virtual screen that can be used anywhere in simulated environments such as outer space.

The screen feels as if it is 100 feet wide, claims Apple, and can be used to enjoy movies and video from Apple TV+ and other streaming services. When combined with spatial sound, it equates to having a personal home theater, the company said.

You can also do work with apps from macOS, view your photographs, communicate with other people virtually, and much more. Apple Vision Pro supports Apple's keyboard and trackpad for work tasks. Here, it is equivalent to working on a 4K display, said Apple.

The headset will enable a completely new type of games, too, that can transport the user to new worlds. At launch, you will be able to play over 100 games from Apple Arcade on a screen that can be adjusted to be as large as you want.


 A virtual TV screen inside Apple Vision Pro
 New types of experiences from Disney will be available on Apple Vision Pro

Disney's CEO Bob Iger was on stage and said Disney is creating new types of experiences specifically for the Apple Vision Pro. These will be available at launch.


With visionOS
In addition to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS, Apple now has visionOS, which was developed specifically for "spatial computing," said Apple. It comes with its own app store.

- "It is the start of an entirely new platform," the company said.

Hundreds of thousands of apps from iPadOS and iOS will be compatible at launch and can run directly on visionOS.


 visionOS has its own app store but it can also run apps from iPadOS and iOS

The Apple Vision Pro can be connected to a wall socket but there is also a separate battery which connects to the headset with a cable. It delivers up to 2 hours of battery life.

The security in the headset is provided by 'Optic ID', which scans the user's iris in the eyes. This is a unique ID even in twins. Data such as where a user looks is not shared with apps or Apple itself, the company said. This applies to inputs from cameras and other sensors, too.

Ahead of Apple's event, Meta (Facebook) decided to pre-announced its new VR headset Quest 3, which will launch this autumn. Meta is the market leader in the VR market following the acquisition of Oculus – a name that it has phased out.

Apple Vision Pro will be available early next year and starts at 3500 dollars. It will come first to the US and later to more countries.


 Apple Vision Pro

 Apple Vision Pro