Internally, Apple has outlined a vision where a headset can eventually be worn all day and everywhere. It would replace the need to tap away on a laptop or even carry a phone. And despite the high price point of Apple’s initial headset — about $3,000 — some within the company believe that the first model will offer consumers a taste of that tantalizing vision…
Apple’s first mixed-reality device, likely to be dubbed the Reality Pro, will launch this year with an immense amount of new technology, ranging from dual 4K displays to a flexible OLED screen on the front that shows a user’s eyes. It will have more than a dozen cameras that can analyze the wearer’s body, eye movements and the external environment.
It will undoubtedly be a marvel and far more advanced than anything else on the market. But it will also be impractical and too expensive for most consumers… I don’t believe Apple has identified a truly “killer app” for the device yet. The company is hoping that immersive video watching, tight integration with other Apple products and advanced VR-based FaceTime calls will reel in consumers, but I’m skeptical that the approach will be enough…
If Apple can ever release true AR glasses — with the price, features and battery life of an iPhone — that will probably change the technology landscape in the same way its previous breakthroughs did.