Play all audios:
The original iPhone wasn’t the first smartphone and had no guarantee of success. But it transformed the smartphone market and led to the development of Androids. Will history repeat itself?
That’s impossible to predict. But Apple’s spatial computer could lift all boats, including Meta’s Quest 3, starting at $499.99 and due this fall, and perhaps products from Sony or others.
Meta’s Quest 3, announced June 1 as a ‘mixed reality’ headset, costs hundreds not thousands and will debut in the fall. Meta OLDER PEOPLE ARE EMBRACING AUGMENTED REALITIES Some older adults
are familiar with VR. Through companies such as MyndVR and Rendever, some use VR to overcome the physical, mental and social challenges that come with aging. They tap into the technology to
virtually attend concerts, exercise, face phobias, perform physical therapy, play games, rekindle memories, travel to far-flung destinations and connect socially, sometimes in retirement
communities. “The idea of virtually going somewhere seems like a poor stand-in,” says journalist Scott Stein, an editor-at-large at CNET who covers what’s now known as the metaverse. “But I
think there are moments in some people’s lives where they can’t go somewhere or they have a memory of something. And some of those headsets can allow that type of either telepresence or
connecting with people.” YOUR HANDS AND EYES BECOME CURSOR, MOUSE The preproduction Vision Pro weighs roughly a pound and carries a cord to connect to a rechargeable battery Apple says will
last about two hours and can slip into a back pocket. The device also can be plugged into a wall outlet. You can see your real-world surroundings through it. It’s portable enough to take on
a plane, but envisioning people walking down a city street wearing it is difficult. The product is compatible with a wireless Apple mouse or keyboard, but the main way to control Vision Pro
is with your voice, eyes and hand gestures. Your eyes become a cursor. When you stare at an icon or tiles that float in a room, you can virtually select one and use a pinch-like gesture to
click. Using this combination of eyes and hands, you can open apps and pictures, plus scroll and drag things around. Numerous windows can be open at the same time and projected anywhere in a
room. I mastered the gestures quickly, though people with physical challenges as they age may find it more difficult. Everything looked good. What didn’t feel so good was the pressure on my
nose, even after Apple swapped one headset for another. I was reminded that what was unveiled isn’t final, and Apple will have different size headbands at launch. The hardware is glass and
aluminum, outfitted with Apple’s chips and super-speedy cameras. It’s packed with 23 million pixels, the dots that make up an image, across two displays. Apple says it exceeds the quality of
a 4K TV. EXPERIENCING FACETIME, ENCOUNTERING DINOSAURS If someone emerges in your field of view while you’re wearing the headset, you can see that. That person will also know when you’re
looking back through a feature called EyeSight. The glass on the front of the goggles becomes transparent. If you’re not paying attention, the other person sees your focus is elsewhere.
Vision Pro leverages apps familiar to Apple users, including the Safari web browser, where text was easy to read, and FaceTime. Third-party apps also will be part of the experience. At the
conference, Disney honcho Bob Iger mentioned that Disney+ streaming will be available and shared video of how Mickey Mouse might jump off the screen and onto a chair in your room.