Apple’s Vision Pro headset, a first-of-its-kind device from the iPhone maker, arrives in the UK on Friday.
It is the US tech giant’s first move into mixed reality and will serve as a marker for future consumer appetite for such devices.
Here is everything you need to know about Apple’s new gadget.
– What is the Vision Pro?
The Vision Pro is a wearable computer, designed as a set of goggles with internal displays that overlay apps and content on to the real world around the wearer so they blend together.
In the industry this is broadly known as mixed reality – where the real and digital combine, but Apple calls it spatial computing.
Vision Pro wearers navigate this world using hand gestures, eye movements and voice commands, and it is powered by a phone-sized battery pack which is wired to the headset and designed to slip into a user’s pocket.
– What is it meant to be used for?
Apple says the device has a range of uses, including as a productivity tool to help with work – for example, the wearer can create an additional display to hover next to their computer screen to help with work.
It can also be used as a communication tool for FaceTime calls using life-size video tiles.
But it is as an entertainment device that the Vision Pro has captured most attention so far.
It enables users to have their own personal cinema-sized screen for watching films and TV, or to play video games, as well as offering large multi-screen options for watching live sport.
Apple has also talked up the Vision Pro’s capacity as a new way to look back at old photos and videos in a larger, more immersive format. The company also allows its flagship iPhone models to capture what it calls spatial video, which take on a 3D effect when viewed on Vision Pro.
– What about battery life?
Apple says the portable power pack will give users around two hours of battery life from Vision Pro, or two and a half hours of video playback.
Vision Pro can also be plugged into a wall socket and used all day.
– How much does Vision Pro cost?
As an ultra-premium technology device, the Vision Pro does not come cheap – it starts at £3,499 for the 256GB storage capacity model.
