In what’s perhaps one of the worst-kept secrets in Silicon Valley, Apple is believed to have been working on several augmented and virtual reality headsets for release in the coming year.
The new mixed-reality product will allow consumers to interact with apps that combine virtual and augmented reality and serve as the next big thing – the spiritual successor to the iPhone and the App Store, pushing technology in yet another direction.
It’s all but confirmed that the devices will be announced in January 2023, following several high-profile reports from technology journalists. Developers found references to ‘realityOS’ in Apple’s open-source code before the company officially registered the trademark in May.
Other trademarks processed include “Reality One,” “Reality Pro,” and “Reality Processor,” suggesting that the company will release an entry-level “One” headset as well as a “Pro” headset featuring more advanced technologies and capabilities.
Although there had previously been speculation that Apple would add an M-series chip into the headset, it appears as though the company is working on an entirely new chipset for the headsets. Indeed, the device would need to run 8K AR/VR content on battery power, and thus a custom chip makes more sense. First-class hardware and cutting-edge software will combine to create immersive experiences that blow the likes of Oculus Rift out of the water.
Early rumors suggest that the first mixed-reality headset could cost up to $3,000. According to Jeff Pu and Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple will first announce the product in January 2023 and then follow up the model with a cheaper “affordable” version to be released the following year. The release strategy would be similar to the Apple Watch, where Apple could tease the new product and get some units out into the wild before refining and re-releasing the headset for mass adoption. And the AR/VR headset is only the beginning of the journey: it will mark the beginning of a new era for Apple, allowing the firm to build an entire ecosystem based on augmented/virtual reality with more products, perhaps even the long-rumored Apple Glasses concept.
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