Finally got my hands on an Apple Vision Pro, about a year after it came out and the hype had mostly passed :). I’d seen enough videos to know what to expect, but a few things still surprised me.
I could watch a lot of films in this
The 3D image is amazing. Bright, sharp and perfectly aligned, with none of the little distractions I associate with watching 3D in a cinema. The built-in sound was much better than I expected too. For me, films were the most convincing reason to use it.
Spatial photos and videos were the other highlight. I’m very curious to see where those go, especially as the tools for capturing and reconstructing scenes improve.
Unfortunately, the headset is really front-heavy. After about half an hour I could feel the fatigue. A better strap might help, but I’d want a lot less weight before settling in for a long film. It’s frustrating when the picture is this good.
Looking and pinching works, mostly
The eye and hand tracking worked well. Looking at something and selecting it felt natural, although placing windows was occasionally awkward and the home control didn’t always behave as I expected.
Connecting a MacBook and spreading windows around me worked great. I still couldn’t imagine spending a working day in it, with the weight and eye fatigue. The demonstration was more appealing than the prospect of wearing it for hours.
I also missed controllers. Some of the immersive apps felt like familiar 3D model viewers, and I wanted the more complex interactions I was used to on Meta headsets. Hands are useful, but they didn’t cover everything I wanted to do.
A few strange decisions
Sharing it was far more fiddly than it should have been. Passing it to a new person meant going through the guest setup rather than having it recognise the change and adjust. For showing an experience to dozens of people at an event, that would get old very quickly.
The field of view with the default face pad felt narrow, a bit like a scuba mask. Trying it without the pad brought my eyes closer to the lenses and made the room around me feel much more connected to the virtual content. I’d love a smaller, more open fit.
The dial had no haptic feedback, which was a small disappointment. I’d imagined a little resistance or vibration. And the front display was barely visible to me. I’d happily lose that part if it saved weight and cost.
I liked the Vision Pro most as a personal 3D screen and for spatial footage. At the roughly €4,000 price I was looking at then, I couldn’t justify it for myself. I’d get much more use out of a cheaper Meta Quest, even if I’d miss that beautiful picture.
