Apple will unveil a new mixed reality headset called the “Reality Pro” at its WWDC keynote on June 5th. That’s within two months from now. And while the headset isn’t expected to actually ship until later this year (it’s going to be an expensive, limited-edition item at first), Apple is giving potential buyers and developers an exciting look. You have to provide an experience.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s latest report, creating custom AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps is all manual work. Most of the apps detailed in the report are assumed, but have yet to be confirmed in practice. Gurman claims engineers at some companies are working 80-hour weeks to prepare the software for its June 5th launch.
In general, every app that comes pre-installed on the iPhone seems to have a custom app for Reality Pro. The apps mentioned in the Gourmand report are:
- books
- calendar
- camera
- contact address
- face time
- fitness
- File
- free form
- garage band
- House
- iMovie
- keynote
- Post
- map
- messaging
- Note
- page
- photograph
- reminder
- music
- news
- numbers
- safari
- stock
- tv set
- weather
Many of the apps are said to look a lot like their iPad counterparts. Since most of these are basically designed around text and images, something like “floating iPad app windows using custom controls” seems like a good approach at first.
This report also explains how to update some of these apps to specifically take advantage of the headset’s Mixed Reality features. For example, it was previously reported that video content could be viewed in a “virtual theater”, likely part of a TV app, or in other virtual settings such as the desert or the moon. The FaceTime app aims to create a digital avatar of the user in the virtual conference room. The Fitness+ app lets you see your fitness instructor in VR during your workout. The meditation app, on the other hand, offers a “set of soothing graphics, sounds and narration.” Of course, the camera lets you take photos and videos using your device’s camera, but the Freeform app allows users to collaborate on projects using a virtual whiteboard.
While the latter is said to be a major selling point, other companies have tried to promote virtual work collaboration with little success. together VR and AR no longer seem appealing.
Apple is also said to be a big selling point for watching sports in an immersive way, with Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer likely to highlight content. The tvOS 16.5 beta introduced a new multi-view feature for sports, though it’s not clear if that’s part of the AR feature.
According to Gurman, games are intended to be the main category for Reality Pro, contrary to the company’s previous approach. Unsurprisingly, he’s one of the best showcases for VR and AR technology, and the most popular software in his category for Meta’s Oculus headset and most of its competitors.
Gurman said Apple “has been working with a handful of developers for several months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality.” There will be a few more months gap between announcement and release, which should give other developers time to join in.
The headset can run multiple apps at once in floating windows. Using them will remember where you are. As an example, if I open Safari in the kitchen, leave, and then come back, Safari reappears. Apple wants as many AR- or VR-optimized apps as possible, but the xrOS operating system, which is reportedly based on iOS, can run iPad apps as-is or with minimal modification.
It seems like every Apple app ends up getting some version optimized for headsets. Some are nothing more than floating windows displaying iPad-like UIs, while others use integrated AR and VR capabilities. device. But Apple seems to recognize that developers need to go all out for a successful device in this category, rather than taking a wait-and-see approach.
