Apple is expected to unveil its new mixed reality headset, dubbed “Reality Pro”, during the WWDC keynote on June 5. It’s in less than two months. And while the headset isn’t expected to ship until the end of the year (and will be an expensive, limited-supply item at first), Apple needs to entice potential buyers and developers with exciting experiences.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s latest report, everyone is on board to create custom AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. Most of the applications detailed in the report have been speculated, but not yet confirmed. Gurman says some of the company’s engineers worked 80 hour weeks to prepare the software for the June 5 launch.
It seems that in general every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone will receive a custom app for Reality Pro. Applications mentioned in Gurman’s report include:
- Books
- Calendars
- Camera
- contacts
- FaceTime
- Aptitude
- Files
- free form
- GarageBand
- Home
- iMovie
- Opening speech
- To post
- Maps
- Messaging
- Remarks
- pages
- Pictures
- Reminders
- Music
- News
- Numbers
- Safari
- Shares
- TV
- Time
Many apps are said to look a lot like their iPad counterparts. Makes sense – most of these things are basically designed around text or images, so things like “floating iPad app windows with custom controls” seem like the right approach at first.
The report also talks about some of the ways some of these apps will be updated to make particular use of the headset’s mixed reality capabilities. For example, it’s already been reported that you’ll be able to watch video content in a “virtual theater” or other virtual settings like the desert or the moon, which will likely be part of the TV app. The FaceTime application will aim to create a digital avatar of users in a virtual meeting room. The Fitness+ app will let you watch a fitness instructor in VR as you work out, while a meditation app will provide “a series of soothing graphics, sounds and voice-overs”. The camera will of course allow you to take photos and videos using the on-device cameras, while the Freeform app will allow users to collaborate on projects using a whiteboard. virtual.
The latter is said to be a major selling point, although other companies have tried to push virtual work collaboration with little success – so far people have been reluctant to work in VR and work together in VR or AR no longer seems enticing.
Apple is also said to be making watching sports in an immersive way a big selling point, with Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer likely highlighting the content. The tvOS 16.5 beta introduced a new Multi-View feature for sports, but it’s unclear if this is also part of the AR features.
In what Gurman says is a reversal of the company’s earlier approach, gaming is meant to be a major category for Reality Pro. It’s no wonder – it’s one of the best showcases for VR and AR technology, and the most popular software category for Meta’s Oculus headsets, along with most other competitors.
Gurman says Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality.” There will be a gap of several months between announcement and release, which should give other developers time to get on board.
The helmet will be able to run several applications at the same time, in floating windows. It will remember where you are when you use them: the example given is that if you open Safari in the kitchen, leave, then come back, Safari will reappear. While Apple wants as many AR or VR optimized apps as possible, the reportedly iOS-based xrOS operating system will be able to run iPad apps as is or with minimal modifications.
Ultimately, it looks like every Apple app will get some sort of headset-optimized version, with some being little more than floating windows displaying an iPad-like user interface and others making full use of Apple’s AR and VR capabilities. the device. But Apple seems to realize that if it wants to make this class of device a success, it needs developers to go all-in rather than taking a wait-and-see approach.
