Silicon Valley is in turmoil. On June 5, Apple invited virtual reality journalists to its developer conference. From there to imagine that the giant will reveal a new product, there is only one step.
Apple has not confirmed anything but leaks have multiplied for a few days in Silicon Valley on a possible presentation on June 5, at its Californian headquarters in Cupertino, of a virtual reality headset. The group invited to its WWDC, its developer conference, specialized journalists, which reinforces the rumor.
>> Virtual reality: the digital giants are betting on the metaverse, a 3D parallel universe
It is said that this helmet, called, according to some information, the Reality Pro, will be expensive. Very expensive: $3,000. Ten times more than popular headsets on the market today. But The Guardian recalls that 10 years ago, a very high price was announced for the first Ipad and that in the end, it did not rise as high.
Rumor has it that the Reality Pro looks like a pair of ski goggles and the battery will fit in your pocket to lighten the helmet, estimated at between 300 and 400 grams, without compromising on power. There would also be a screen on the outside to show the reaction of the user who will be able to connect and talk on Facetime with the headset. The image would have a 4K resolution. The sound would be compatible with the AirPods Pro, already produced by Apple. THE wall street journal understands that the capabilities of the Reality Pro, like its price, are well above the competition.
Not developed for the general public
Apple would enter this market because the company obviously believes in it. She would work on this product since 2016. American media speak of a billion dollars spent each year on research and development. Apple didn’t become a $2.5 trillion-plus company on Wall Street just with its computers. Music players, phones, tablets, watches, headphones… The Cupertino company also earns a lot of money with its App Store, its music services. She launched a streaming platform. The headset would be further diversification, and a new product, rather than showcasing iPhone number 58. But a former marketing executive for the company told SamaGame that the Reality Pro could become one of the biggest fiascos in the game. history of technology. We will have to see who this headset is for because with this price, Apple is clearly not targeting the general public. The giant plans to sell 300,000 copies for its first year. To compare, Meta’s Quest 2 in 2021 was nine million copies sold.
What would the arrival of Apple mean for the competition? Apple has a reputation for excellence and usually doesn’t settle for crumbs. And besides, all is not perfect with virtual reality. It still puts off a lot of people. Maybe the apple brand will make the experience more enjoyable. For example, controllers are used in addition to the helmet. Is Apple going to develop a device that would make it possible to do without it by simply following the movement of the hands, for example? Will the group associate its other devices with the headset and create an ecosystem that would facilitate use? Samsung and Google would also prepare a helmet. A lot of things will also depend on software, in the same way that apps help make smartphones much more than phones. And the presence of Apple on the market will perhaps push developers to take an interest in it.
This new Apple product for less than 2000 euros could well steal the show from the famous VR headset
Apple intends to hit hard at WWDC on Monday June 5. It will be about the new virtual reality headset, operating systems. But not only.
Two o’clock. This is how long the Apple keynote should last at its traditional and annual developer conference, the WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference). In front of an audience of application creators who have come to make themselves known (and seek funding) and a few journalists, the Cupertino company intends to strike a blow.
Apple would thus present a brand new product, awaited for years by fans of the brand: a virtual reality headset. More specifically, it is a mixed reality headset that will make possible a clever mix of a virtual world in the real world by putting said headset on its head. It will consist of two glasses, thus offering a screen for each eye, about fifteen cameras and sensors to find one’s bearings in the space around oneself. The idea of this product is to transport the person putting on the helmet into a world that is both parallel and rooted in reality. Today, Facebook, with its Meta Quest 2 model, is somewhat alone in this area, which is not yet very popular with consumers. The arrival of Apple will undeniably boost a market estimated at 51 billion dollars per year by 2030 by GlobalData.
According to High-Tech specialists, if Tim Cook and his teams will present this helmet on Monday June 5, it will only be available this fall, for an expected price of 2500 or 3000 euros. The mixed reality headset will therefore not be cheap, even if we can hope for a lighter version in financial terms, but therefore necessarily also in technical terms. And this price will surely make some people moan, as is the case during an iPhone release for example. But the technology is at this price.
New computers at WWDC?
During this WWDC, Apple will obviously present, as every year, its new operating systems: iOS for the iPhone, iPadOS for the iPad, WatchOS for the Apple Watch, and the one that will boost its desktop and laptop computers. The latter should indeed see their range expand if we are to believe some well-informed sources, such as Mark Gurman of SamaGame.
In a tweet, Mark Gurman explains that he expects to see several “new Macs” unveiled on Monday June 5th. The first of these would be the 15-inch Macbook Air, a size that would be a first for this popular category of customers. The MacBook Air is indeed the lightest model, therefore the most transportable (the current 13.6-inch format weighs 1.24 kilograms), while being powerful and autonomous enough to work in complete peace of mind, especially with the in-house M2 chip. . This should equip the 15-inch MacBook Air. The price should be around 2000 euros, or even perhaps a little less (1800 euros?), the 13.6 inch starting today at 1499 euros (1199 euros with the M1 chip, the screen being a little smaller : 13.3 inches). Here, for the first time, the American brand would therefore opt for a 15-inch format. It won’t be revolutionary in technological and technical terms, but the popularity of the MacBook Air is such that this new product could steal the show from Apple’s first mixed reality headset.
Apple’s mixed reality headset would be a nightmare to assemble
Next Monday, the floodgates will open and then, from Cupertino and around the world, there will be a tidal wave of new software, but also hardware. We should therefore see a 15-inch MacBook Air coming – good! – and also a mixed reality headset, the first from Apple – very good!
The device has been in development for years and obviously its design has not been easy. Wayne Ma, journalist for The Information, has just published a long article in which he details some of the problems encountered by the Apple teams. Concerns, which, for many, are due to the design retained by the device.
A full glass?
Quite thin, light and stylish, with its carbon fiber structure and glass front panel, enclosed in an aluminum frame, Apple’s mixed reality headset should stand out from the competition, that’s for sure. But behind these premium design choices, all is not rosy.
Take for example the glass facade. It worries some Apple employees, who are afraid that users will bump into a wall or piece of furniture, for example, and break the thin layer of glass, with all the risk of injury that this may entail. Especially since its curvature would make it more fragile than the front of the iPhone, apparently. The Information also indicates that Apple has taken time to find the right balance between thickness and weight of the glass front and impact resistance. Hope it will be strong.
But this is not the only negative point that accompanies its presence. This smooth and design facade is indeed interposed between the world and the very many on-board camera modules (a dozen). However, since the glass is never uniform, it would be necessary to check and calibrate each camera by hand and in the factory during assembly. Otherwise, users may suffer from nausea due to small image distortions. This unavoidable, restrictive and time-consuming task does not contribute to facilitating the manufacture of the product.
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