Since Monday, we have been talking about the presentation of the Apple Vision Pro. And no wonder, surely the most groundbreaking and advanced technological product we have seen on stage in more than a decade.
But are these glasses really a revolution in the sector? Some say yes, others say no. Let’s compare them with Facebook’s Meta Quest, the most popular and advanced glasses of the moment… until Monday. Our colleagues at Engadget explained it very well.
Hardware: A computer vs a smartphone
The technology in mixed reality headsets, such as Meta’s Quest line, is often optimized for longevity and light weight, at the expense of performance.
Their chips tend to be for mobile and are not powerful enough to handle multiple demanding applications or render photorealistic images, and even the Snapdragon XR2+ chip in the Quest Pro has its roots in the Snapdragon 865 that powered the Galaxy S20 three years ago.
This has its advantages (you don’t want heavy glasses during a Supernatural workout), but there’s also no doubt that Meta, HTC and others are making compromises here.
If Meta’s mixed reality proposition revolves around a lightweight, dedicated headset that brings you into the metaverse, Apple’s Vision Pro is a machine that does it all.
The M2 inside is a computer chip that can easily run multiple applications at once with demanding graphics, and the 4K resolution per eye ensures that you won’t have to squint at a web browser or spreadsheet on a virtual desktop.
It is also one of the few glasses that can capture 3D photos and videos, although admittedly that is a novelty at the moment.
Software: the key will be the ecosystem
The mixed reality helmets seen to date, including Meta’s, have typically focused on “in and out” experiences. That is, you put the helmet on to do one thing and leave as soon as you’ve done it.
You put it on to play a round of Beat Saber, meet up with friends in Horizon Worlds or check out your company’s latest product design, but switch to your computer or phone for just about everything else.
That’s fine in many cases. You probably don’t want to play virtual reality games for very long, and you may rarely need an augmented reality collaboration tool.
But that also limits the incentive to buy a helmet if it’s not for general use. And while Meta envisions Quest users spending much of their time in the metaverse, it has not made a compelling case for the concept.
Apple’s VisionOS, meanwhile, is precisely what it sounds like: a general-purpose operating system. It is clearly designed to run multiple applications at once, with a sophisticated virtual desktop that can juggle 2D and 3D software placed throughout the physical space.
It includes familiar apps like the Safari browser and can run hundreds of thousands of iPad and iPhone titles. That’s key: even if you rarely need mixed reality apps, you can take advantage of a vast library of software without needing to connect to a computer.
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