This is Apple’s $3,500 Vision Pro glasses: features and sale date

() — The Vision Pro glasses are Apple’s new mixed reality (virtual reality with augmented reality) device, presented on June 5 at its global developer conference. It is considered the company’s most ambitious product in years.

The device promises to be its biggest and riskiest launch of new hardware in years. Apple CEO Tim Cook said it’s “the first product you look through, not at.”

Augmented reality is a technology that allows users to superimpose virtual images on top of live video from the real world.

“It looks familiar but it’s totally new… like it’s in your physical space, using natural intuitive tools like your hands, your face and your voice,” he said.

According to Apple, once the user puts the device on, they will be able to see the applications projected directly in front of them. The interface is designed to appear “truly present” in your room, responding to light and casting shadows to help users understand scale and distance.

“It’s easy to build applications at any scale…anywhere in your space that feels natural to you,” an Apple executive said at the event. “Just you and your content…it seems like magic,” he added.

The device responds to the user’s hands and eyes “as if your mind guides the experience.” But it works even if the hands are in the lap.

The price and date of sale of the Vision Pro

If you’re interested in Apple’s vision of the future, it’ll cost you. And a lot.

Apple’s new Vision Pro AR/VR headset will cost $3,499. That’s more than double the cost of the most powerful iPhone 14 Pro. It even costs more than Apple’s largest MacBook Pro.

By contrast, its closest competitor, the Meta Quest Pro, costs $999.

Apple said the Vision Pro will go on sale early next year, after developers have time to create apps that work with the system.

The bet and the challenges

The new Apple Vision Pro looks like a pair of ski goggles and allows people to overlay virtual images onto live video from the real world.

According to Apple, once a user places the device, they can see the apps projected directly in front of them. At the event, Apple showcased a variety of unique product experiences, including apps for medical, productivity, and entertainment. Disney CEO Bob Iger also joined Apple’s event to discuss how Disney will create content for the new Vision Pro headphones.

Unlike other headsets, the new mixed reality headset will show the eyes of its users on the outside, so “you’re never isolated from the people around you, you can see them and they can see you,” said Alan Dye, vice president. human interface.

But the product faces a number of challenges: Apple is diving into an untested market littered with other tech companies that have tried and largely failed to find mainstream traction for their devices. Apple is also charging $3,499 for the device, more than previously rumored and a hefty amount at a time of lingering economic uncertainty.

With information from Samantha Murphy Kelly, Catherine Thorbecke, Clare Duffy, David Goldman, Aditi Sangal