Preparing for student life can be exciting and stressful. To make things easier, it’s good to know that you’ve got the right tech to help you write your essays, take notes in lessons, and kick back with Netflix and games when the work is done. The iPad has evolved in recent years to something that can now act as a laptop replacement for many students, with accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil making it one of the most versatile devices you can buy. 

Choosing the best iPad can be tricky, as Apple currently offers a wide range of models with different prices and features. But that’s not a problem for Macworld readers. Here’s our guide to buying an iPad for your student days. 

Before you decide, you should also know that you can get money off a new Apple product by shopping in Apple’s education store. In a separate article, you can read all about how to get an Apple Student Discount. Apple offers money off new iPad purchases to students in higher education all year round.

Plus, if you’re a student and you buy an iPad (or a Mac) from Apple, you might be able to get a free gift such as a pair of AirPods or vouchers while the company’s “Back To Uni” event is running. (This usually runs from June to September in the U.S. and Canada, and from July to October in the U.K. and January to March in Australia)

Click on the following links for the Education stores in the countries where most of our readers reside:

• Apple’s U.S. Education Store
• Apple’s U.K. Education Store (in the UK you will need to verify your student status via UNiDAYS).
• Apple’s Canada Education Store
• Apple’s Australian Education Store

If you’re a student, you can also get Apple Music for half price with free Apple TV+ included.

How much can students save on an iPad?

You can save as much as $50 in the U.S., £60 in the U.K., $90 in Australia, and $70 in Canada if you buy from the education store.

Product	U.S.	U.K.	Australia	Canada
iPad (9th gen) MSRP	$329	£369	$549	$449
iPad (9th gen) Student Price	$309	£349	$519	$419
iPad (10th gen) MSRP	$449	£499	$749	$599
iPad (10th gen) Student Price	$419	£469	$699	$559
iPad mini MSRP	$499	£569	$829	$679
iPad mini Student Price	$449	£509	$749	$609
iPad Air MSRP	$599	£669	$999	$799
iPad Air Student Price	$549	£609	$919	$729
iPad Pro 11-inch MSRP	$799	£899	$1,399	$1,099
iPad Pro 11-inch Student Price	$749	£839	$1,309	$1,029

How to get an iPad student discount

Apple offers a student discount via its country-specific education stores. To recap:

• Apple’s U.S. Education Store
• Apple’s U.K. Education Store (in the UK you will need to verify your student status via UNiDAYS).
• Apple’s Canada Education Store
• Apple’s Australian Education Store

Depending on your location you may only need to sign up with details of your student status and course and prove your identity. Some countries have less stringent checks than others. In the U.K. you need to be registered with UNiDAYS in order to even see the student prices. We explain how to do this in our article How to get an Apple student discount.

To qualify for a discount you also need to meet Apple’s conditions. You either need to be a student in higher education, or a teacher at a teaching institution. The only way to get a discount for a child still at school is to be home educating them or to be a teacher yourself.

If you can’t get a student discount that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to get money off a new iPad though. Read our round-up of the best iPad deals. You will also find links to the best deals for each iPad below.

Best iPad for students

Should students buy an iPad or a laptop?

Before you go ahead and buy your iPad you may want to consider its suitability for your purpose.

As a student you probably have a few requirements:

• Low price
• Great apps for things like note-taking, recording lectures and revision
• Light enough to carry around all-day
• Keyboard and stylus support
• Suitable for making video calls home

You might be wondering whether a tablet or a laptop would be better for those needs, and if you lean towards the latter, take a look at our guide to the best Macs for students.

We think, however, that an iPad is a great choice. It runs many of the apps you’ll find on a laptop, including Office apps like Word and PowerPoint and the Apple equivalents, and in some cases, an iPad is actually more powerful than a laptop thanks to the super-fast processors Apple uses.

Another benefit is that you can have all the books you need for your course on your iPad and carry them with you to lectures and tutorials. You could even photograph pages from books in the library and use optical character recognition to save the text to your iPad.

Not only do you not need to lug all your books around with you, but an iPad is also far lighter than even the lightest laptop, so you won’t be getting backache from carrying it to lectures and the library.

With battery life of 10 hours–plenty for a day on campus–you aren’t going to need to find a space beside a plug socket in order to get through a day at uni.

Think that having an iPad will mean you have to type on an on-screen keyboard. No! You could sync any Bluetooth keyboard or plug in one of Apple’s own iPad keyboards and effectively turn your iPad into a laptop. There’s also the Apple Pencil, which could come in useful if you wanted to jot down some notes on your iPad screen in a lecture. See Best stylus for iPad.

And when you’ve finished studying there are loads of games, and apps for video calling your parents.

Still not sure? We have more information comparing a MacBook laptop and an iPad.

Are iPads good for students?

The next question you might want some reassurance on is whether the iPad is the best option for a student. There are a lot of other tablets available, many of which are cheaper than an iPad. So you might be thinking of saving some money.

We think if you do so you will regret it. There are many reasons why Apple’s iPads are so popular:

• The App Store is heaving with great apps designed specifically for the iPad.
• Many of those apps will be ideal for students: note-taking apps, apps for converting handwriting to text, apps for recording lectures, timetable management, and of course video calling (so you can stay in touch with mum and dad).
• There is an ecosystem of great accessories designed to work with the iPad.
• Apple’s iPadOS is stable and easy to use, especially if you already have an iPhone.
• If you’ve got a Mac you can use an iPad as a second screen, provided you’re running Big Sur or later. 

Further reading

That’s all of our student-related buying advice, but if you’re buying for someone younger, check out our guide to the best iPad for kids.

iPad

Apple’s announced the long rumored headset – which will be called Vision Pro, probably indicating that one day in the not so distant future we will see a less ‘Pro’ version of the headset.

Release date

Early next year.

Price

Vision Pro will start at $3,499.

Design

Modular design – can be tailored to fit you perfectly. Flexible straps to fit to your head, the Audio Pods fit near your ears. You can change the band for another size, or a different band. You can get custom optical inserts to correct vision if you need glasses.

Specs

Display – more pixels than a 4K display for each eye. Enables video to be rendered at 4K resolution. Makes text sharp from any angle.

Audio – Sound feels like it is coming from the space around you. Personal sound, ambient spacial audio. Vision PRo matches the sound to your room using audio raytracing. Uses advance sensor array.

Interface – uses Lidar scanner and high performance eye tracking. “So precise it frees up your hands.”

Uses M2 chip. Runs virtually silent. Uses R1 chip to process input from cameras and microphones. R1 eliminates lag to avoid latency. 8x faster than the blink of an eye.

Apps

VisionOS – designed from the ground up for vision computing. New platform. Developers can use familiar tools to create apps.

Eye Sight – projects the correct perspective of your eyes to the people looking at you.

Video Conferencing – created a novel solution to the fact that you don’t have a camera in front of you, and you have a mask on. With your persona you can appear in the other videos. It can also show your hand movements.

Eye Sight – projects the correct perspective of your eyes to the people looking at you.

Video Conferencing – created a novel solution to the fact that you don’t have a camera in front of you, and you have a mask on. With your persona you can appear in the other videos. It can also show your hand movements.

SkyGuide – transfers you to space.

Lots of apps available at launch: Microsoft Office Apps, third party video conferencing apps, Adobe Lightroom. Contorlol.l.ed with your eyes. New App store to download apps for VisionOS as well as iOS and iPadOS.

Safari – scrolling. Text is easy to read at any angle. You can see all your open apps.

FaceTime – spacial. Take advantage of the room around you. See everyone life size. Their voice comes from the direction of their tile.

Content in apps isn’t limited to 2D. You can look at objects in 3D.

Listen to music and use other apps side by side. Watch a movie together.

Arcade Games – you can play your favourite games, with 100 titles available on day one. Compatible with games controllers.

Spacial Videos and Photos – You can capture and then view images and feel like you are back where you took them. Go back to a moment in time with a Spacial Video or Photo.

Entertainment – Spacial Cinema can be adjusted to the perfect size. Surrounds you with spacial audio. Focus fully on the movie. You can watch 3D movies – it feels like you are looking into the movie itself.

Disney – Bob Iger CEO of Disney on stage to announce “Apple Vision Pro can make our vision a reality”. “Bring Disney to our fans in ways we previously didn’t think possible”. Partnering to make Disney Plus available for Vision Pro on day one.

And with all the privacy and security features Apple is known for.

What it is like to use

When you first put on Vision Pro you see your surroundings. You can freely move apps to fill the space around you, they can expend into your space.

Environments – extend and transform your space, enabling “impossible experiences”.

Control how immersed you are by turning the digital crown.

Apple Vision Pro relies on your hands, eyes and voice to browse. You browse the system by looking – it responds to your eyes. You can just look at a text input and begin dictating.

Design goal of Vision Pro: Never isolated from the people around you – it displays your eyes when there is someone near you. This provides cues to people and sends a clear signal to people that you can’t see you. But if someone is near by they will appear in your view. And at the same time they will see your eyes. Easy to interact with the world around you.

Works seamlessly with familiar Bluetooth accessories.

Bring Mac wirelessly into Apple Vision Pro just by looking at it – will give you a 4K display.

Use when working remotely. Collaborate on the same document as your team.

We will update this story as the news breaks, please reload this page for the latest news.

— Here are the rumors —

It’s looking more and more like Apple’s next big thing won’t be something that fits in your pocket or a bag. Rather it could be another wearable device–specifically an Apple headset that provides augmented and virtual reality–and it could be unveiled by Apple TODAY!

This strongly rumored Apple VR headset has been dubbed “Reality Pro”, but nobody knows for sure what Apple will call the headset, or for that matter, what the Apple headset will do, but a combination of VR and AR looks likely to be offered. Analyst Ming Chi-Kuo said back in 2021 that Apple’s “goal is to replace the ‌iPhone‌ with AR in 10 years.”

Here’s everything we know so far about Apple’s rumored mixed-reality headset that could arrive at WWDC on June 5.

Apple AR/VR headset: Latest rumors

June 2, 2023: Mark Gurman tweeted a list of the conditions that will probably stop you using the new Apple headset, including migraines, epilepsy, and pregnancy.

May 30, 2023: Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants claims to have received the final display specs for the AR headset. He says it will feature a 1.41-inch 4K display for each eye.

May 22, 2023: Apple has apparently registered trademarks for “xrProOS“, “realityproOS“, and “realOS” through shell companies (a common tactic with Apple for unannounced products).

May 18, 2023: Mark Gurman discusses Apple’s uncertainty as to how successful the headset project will be in a Bloomberg report.

May 16, 2023: Apple appears to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using the name of a shell company.

May 15, 2023: Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims Apple is “well prepared” for next month’s Reality Pro announcement.

April 24 2023: Mark Gurman reports that the battery pack, which is required for operation, is about the size of the MagSafe Battery Pack (about the same as a deck of cards). It has an integrated cable that cannot be removed, and the cable has a magnetic attachment to the headset that “locks in” with a clockwise turn to keep it from being knocked off while in use.

Apple AR/VR headset: Release date

The most recent rumors come primarily from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who reports that the operating system (xrOS) and other software development for the headset are now in high gear with a release date aimed for 2023. A February 2023 report from Gurman indicates that Apple will unveil the headset at WWDC in June 5, with a consumer release later in the year.

So we could see Apple unveil its Reality Pro headset at WWDC during the keynote on June 5. There may be a longer wait until the device goes on sale though.

There is some evidence that Apple is gearing up to launch the device soon. The company is presumed to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using a shell company: Deep Dive, which has previously been involved in xrOS trademark activity. Signs that this is Apple include the use of Apple’s SF Pro typeface for the letters. The trademark application indicates that Apple is using xrOS not realityOS for the name of the operating system. Apple has also registered trademarks for “xrProOS”, “realityproOS”, and “realOS”.

In January 2023 Apple released a preview version of a “Devices” app for Windows PCs (in which one would manage iPhones and other devices on a Windows PC as iTunes is phased out; Macs use Finder for this task) and Twitter user @aaronp613 discovered references in the code of this release to “Reality OS” and “xrOS”, the operating system code names for Apple’s Reality headset.

Apple AR/VR headset: Name

A Mark Gurman Bloomberg report on May 18 claimed that his sources had indicated that “Reality” will be part of the brand, with the first iteration of the headset being called Reality Pro and a more affordable model, that will launch in 2025 being named Reality One.

It is unclear what the operating system will be called. A company called “Deep Dive LLC,” believed to be a shell company for Apple to protect secret projects, filed for a trademark on “xrOS” in early May. It then later filed one for “xrProOS.” A company named “Immersive Health Solutions LLC” filed for trademarks on “RealityproOS” while a company by the name of “Realityo Systems LLC” filed for the term “realOS.” Fujitsu had a trademark on “realOS” since 2006, but that trademark was acquired by Realityo Systems LLC in 2022. Apple often uses small shell companies like these to secure trademarks and the like prior to the announcement of a new product or service.

Apple AR/VR headset: Price

The headset is not expected to actually ship until later this year (and will be an expensive, limited-quantity item at the start).

As far as pricing is concerned, rumors suggest that the first iteration could be an extremely expensive device. Rumors from Bloomberg suggest a price of around $3,000, which will almost certainly keep the product from achieving mass appeal. The next version of the Reality Pro is said to be a significantly cost-reduced model, due a year or two after the first. That model should cut the price in half.

A report by XRDailyNews in late May 2023 indicated that the materials used for the Apple headset will cost around $1,500–the devices will of course cost a lot more than that, due to research and development costs, production, shipping, distribution, and other factors. In comparison, the Meta Quest materials cost around $750.

Apple AR/VR headset: Features and functionality

We can only speculate at this stage about what Apple’s rumored headset will do or be, and whether there is even need for such a device.

At least some people have, apparently, seen the device and have good things to say. For example, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey says it’s “so good” and a source of Evan Blass @evleaks on Twitter was initially unimpressed by its “‘underwhelming’ capabilities”, but is now “blown away“.

The Apple headset is so good.

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) May 14, 2023

It’s not clear which technology the headset will showcase: AR, VR, MR, XR are all different forms of ‘reality’ that the headset could present to us. Which one will it be or will it be all of them?

• VR = Virtual Reality (completely replaces your view)
• AR = Augmented Reality (overlays real world with graphics and information)
• MR = Mixed Reality (combining AR and VR)
• XR = Extended Reality (combining AR, VR and MR)

It seems most likely that we can expect a device that combines AR and VR, although what benefits such a combination would result in aren’t clear. For example, the headset could overlay directions on the real world image of the street in front of you, but would a user want to wear a headset if it restricted their view of the outside world? An alternative use could be to join a conference call, but why would meeting people in a virtual environment be any better than watching people on a screen?

Existing devices from the competition include the Microsoft HoloLens and gaming headsets, such as the PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 2. The HoloLens is really meant for industries such as healthcare and manufacturing, rather than consumer use (and has a price to match). The gaming headsets are consumer focused, but Apple’s gaming prowess is debatable.

Existing Apple apps will be part of xrOS. Apple is said to be focused on various apps and how they can be used with its headset. Alongside games, we can expect Apple to present users with the Books, TV, FaceTime and more apps as well as the ability to access email and messages, and apparently use Fitness and meditation apps. We can’t imagine many people will want to do a workout with a headset on though…

Apple AR/VR headset: Technology

Rumors and leaks have suggested that Apple’s headset will incorporate the following technology:

Advanced eye and hand tracking are said to be key features of the device–differentiators to set Reality Pro apart from rival devices. Several external cameras will monitor hand movements, and internal sensors will see where your eyes are looking. You’ll be able to control something simply by looking at it, and then pinching your thumb and index finger together to select it. There will be no controllers or other pointing devices.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in May 2023 claimed that the user’s surroundings will be displayed on the screen while an outward-facing display will show eye movement and facial expressions.

The headset will also incorporate gyroscopes and sensors to adjust what you see based on the direction you are facing.

Text input will be done by voice, or using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac keyboard. Eventually, users may be able to simply type in the air to input text, but Apple is apparently still working on that feature and isn’t expected to have it available for launch. Unlike Apple Watch, an iPhone will not be required to set up or use Reality Pro.

The headset will apparently be able to smoothly transition between AR and VR modes by dialing a digital crown, can serve as an external display for a connected Mac, and perform many of the functions of an iPhone or iPad.

Apple AR/VR headset: Design

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s sources, Apple had initially wanted the headset to be similar to “a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses” that “would feel more like a fashion accessory than a computer strapped to your face.” However, as per an 18 May 2023 report, Gurman claims the first iteration of the headset will be more like virtual reality (VR) “ski goggles.”

This confirms other reports that have indicated that, while the ultimate goal of Apple’s AR project is apparently to produce a pair of fashionable smart glasses, the first version will reportedly be much bigger than that, weighing between 300-400 grams, according to Ming-Chi Kuo.

The first-generation Apple headset is therefore expected to be an Oculus-style headset with a knit mesh-wrapped body similar to the AirPods Max. It could look something like a sleeker version of Google’s Daydream headset, which also had a soft fabric body.

Apple has filed a patent application for a “head-mounted display unit” that detailed several areas of adjustment, suggesting comfort will be an area of focus.

Apple will also want to make the headset as light as possible. Supposedly the device is made of aluminum, glass, and carbon fiber to minimize weight. In January 2022 Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple will be using “pancake” lenses to keep the weight and bulk down.

In order to keep the headset weight down and improve comfort, the headset will require an external battery pack to use. It is said to be similar to the iPhone MagSafe Battery Pack–around the size of a deck of cards. The pack will recharge via USB-C and connect to the headset via a proprietary round magnetic connector that you twist clockwise to lock into place so it doesn’t come off during use. The pack is said to last around two hours, so you’ll have to use another one for longer sessions.

Curiously, Kuo says Apple is already working on a second-generation model (via 9to5Mac) expected to launch in 2024 with a “significantly lighter” and “updated industrial” design.

The New York Times reported in June that the headset “looks like a pair of ski goggles.” The Information says a small digital crown-like wheel on the side will let users seamlessly switch between fully virtual (VR) and seeing their surroundings (AR).

Freelancer.com held a contest for artists to create concepts of what the headset might look like. Take a look at the designs. The winner of the contest was Ahmed Chenni.

Apple AR/VR headset: Audio

According to a report by The Information, the latency for most wireless earbuds or headphones is too high for its purposes, so users will have to use one of two solutions. One is a headband with integrated speakers (much like that on the Meta Quest Pro), the other is to use recent AirPods models, which can enter an “ultra-low latency” mode when connected to the headset. The headset apparently contains the H2 processors (found in the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro).

Apple AR/VR headset: Displays

Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants, claims to have seen the display specs for the AR headset. He claims the headset (which will be Micro OLED) will feature:

• Two 1.41 inch screens (measured diagonally)
• 4,000ppi per eye
• More than 5,000 nits of brightness (peak brightness)

You want more, I will give you more: Micro OLED specs for Apple’s AR/VR headset:
1.41″ in diagonal
4000 PPI
>5000 nits of brightness

— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) May 30, 2023

These are impressive specs. The PlayStation VR2 headset offers a ppi of around 850 per screen. The HoloLens had a max brightness of 500 nits. None of the current devices on the market use Micro OLED, which offers better brightness and black levels than mini LED.

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s glasses are rumored to handle both virtual and augmented reality via a pair of high-resolution OLED 4K screens made by Sony, including eye-tracking technology. The headset will reportedly feature more than a dozen cameras and sensors, according to The Information, which will project a real-world view onto the screens as if you were looking through clear glass. It will presumably use either OLED or mini LED and incorporate Apple’s Ceramic Shield coating as well.

In January, Display Supply Chain Consultants reported that the headset will have “three display modules” comprised of two Micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The AMOLED display is apparently a low-refresh display that faces outward, to show other people your facial expression and reduce the awkwardness of interacting with people wearing the headset.

Small internal motors are said to automatically adjust the lenses and displays to match the users’ IPD (inter-pupillary distance, which is how far apart your eyes are), giving a full field of view of 120 degrees.

Apple AR/VR headset: Processor and specs

According to Kuo (via MacRumors), Apple’s AR headset will have two processors, with the higher-end processor being a sort of variant on the M2 processor used in Macs and iPads, and the secondary chip responsible for graphics and sensor-related functions for mixed reality. That second chip will be called the “Reality Processor” according to trademark applications. The sounds like a lot of processing power for a headset, but if the headset needs to power a pair of 4K displays, it will need a hefty chip. Reports also say that it will need to be tethered to an iPhone, much like the original Apple Watch.

Kuo also reported that the headset will support Wi-Fi 6E, which is also rumored to come to the iPhone 14. It will also presumably have at least 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. We don’t know anything yet about the battery life, but Kuo says improving battery life will be a focus of the second-generation model. Kuo reports that the headset will come with the same 96W power adapter as the MacBook Pro, which suggests it will have a big battery.

The Information says the device is powered by a main SoC with CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage, along with a secondary custom image signal processor that stitches together all the inputs from all the cameras into a single representation of the outside world, and it communicates with the SoC via a custom ultra-low-latency streaming codec developed by Apple.

The headset is said too employ both short-range and long-range LiDAR to develop a 3D map of your surroundings.

Apple AR/VR headset: Apps and software

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s headset will also be able to handle both AR and VR applications, which opens the headset up to a variety of apps and services.

A Bloomberg report in April 2023 indicates that Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality” as well as developing AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. These apps are said to be updated to make use of the mixed reality capabilities of the headset and look like their iPad counterparts.

Apparently, every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone/iPad is going to get a custom app for the Reality Pro, including:

• Books
• Calendars
• Camera
• Contacts
• FaceTime – create a digital avatar and meet other users in a virtual meeting room.
• Fitness – watch a fitness instructor in VR while you work out in a virtual location (might be difficult to work out wearing a headset).
• Files
• Freeform
• GarageBand
• Home
• iMovie
• Keynote
• Mail
• Maps
• Messaging
• Notes
• Pages
• Photos
• Reminders
• Music
• News
• Numbers
• Safari
• Stocks
• TV – allowing users to view video content in a ‘virtual theater’ or other virtual settings like the desert or moon.
• Weather

The headset is expected to come with new versions of core apps like Messages and Maps and reports claim that Apple recently enlisted the head of engineering for its iWork productivity apps, Notes app, and Apple News to work on the headset.

Gurman suggests that the headset will be able to run multiple apps at the same time in floating windows. Apps can be automatically opened as you enter a specific location as well.

Gaming is meant to be a major category for Reality Pro. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also said in December 2021 that gaming could have “a strong focus” on the platform as well as “media consumption.”

Apple will also surely have apps dedicated to AR, such as the Measure app and things like the tool that lets you see a 3D render of Apple products before you buy it. In a December report, Gurman said the iPhone’s Animojis and VR FaceTime could be positioned as “the new-age Zoom.”

Apple is expected to feature advanced FaceTime-based video conferencing and virtual meeting rooms that will realistically render a user’s face and body in virtual reality. Two users, each with a Reality Pro headset, could have a virtual meeting and feel like they’re in the same room, it is said. This requires a lot of processing power and will therefore only be available in one-on-one chats; additional users would be displayed as icons or Memoji.

The New York Times reported in June that Apple “has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau” to develop content for its upcoming headset. The report said Favreau is “working to bring (Prehistoric Planet’s) dinosaurs to life on the headset.”

We’re told that we can expect a software development kit and App Store for third-party applications as well.

Apple AR/VR headset: Problems and prohibitions

If you have any of the following conditions you may not be able to use an Apple headset.

If you’re prone to inner ear infections, have ADHD/ADD, anxiety disorders, a pacemaker, epilepsy, blackouts/seizures or are pregnant, you may be warned against using the headset. In addition to Meniere’s disease, past traumatic brain injuries, post-concussion syndrome, migraines. https://t.co/fuasZ1Cy8F

— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) June 2, 2023

Those are all standard limitations for VR headsets, but none the less it illustrates the fact that this headset won’t be for everyone.

Computer Accessories

It’s looking more and more like Apple’s next big thing won’t be something that fits in your pocket or a bag. Rather it could be another wearable device–specifically an Apple headset that provides augmented and virtual reality.

This strongly rumored Apple VR headset has been dubbed “Reality Pro”, but nobody knows for sure what Apple will call the headset, or for that matter, what the Apple headset will do, but a combination of VR and AR looks likely to be offered. Analyst Ming Chi-Kuo said back in 2021 that Apple’s “goal is to replace the ‌iPhone‌ with AR in 10 years.”

Here’s everything we know so far about Apple’s rumored mixed-reality headset which could arrive in 2023–perhaps as soon as WWDC on June 5.

Apple AR/VR headset: Latest rumors

May 30, 2023: Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants claims to have received the final display specs for the AR headset. He says it will feature a 1.41-inch 4K display for each eye.

May 22, 2023: Apple has apparently registered trademarks for “xrProOS“, “realityproOS“, and “realOS” through shell companies (a common tactic with Apple for unannounced products).

May 18, 2023: Mark Gurman discusses Apple’s uncertainty as to how successful the headset project will be in a Bloomberg report.

May 16, 2023: Apple appears to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using the name of a shell company.

May 15, 2023: Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims Apple is “well prepared” for next month’s Reality Pro announcement.

April 24 2023: Mark Gurman reports that the battery pack, which is required for operation, is about the size of the MagSafe Battery Pack (about the same as a deck of cards). It has an integrated cable that cannot be removed, and the cable has a magnetic attachment to the headset that “locks in” with a clockwise turn to keep from being knocked off while in use.

Apple AR/VR headset: Release date

The most recent rumors come primarily from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who reports that the operating system (xrOS) and other software development for the headset is now in high gear with a release date aimed for 2023. A February 2023 report from Gurman indicates that Apple will unveil the headset at WWDC in June, with a consumer release later in the year.

So we could see Apple unveil its Reality Pro headset at WWDC during the keynote on June 5. There may be a longer wait until the device goes on sale though.

There is some evidence that Apple is gearing up to launch the device soon. The company is presumed to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using a shell company: Deep Dive, which has previously been involved in xrOS trademark activity. Signs that this is Apple include the use of Apple’s SF Pro typeface for the letters. The trademark application indicates that Apple is using xrOS not realityOS for the name of the operating system. Apple has also registered trademarks for “xrProOS”, “realityproOS”, and “realOS”.

In January 2023 Apple released a preview version of a “Devices” app for Windows PCs (in which one would manage iPhones and other devices on a Windows PC as iTunes is phased out; Macs use Finder for this task) and Twitter user @aaronp613 discovered references in the code of this release to “Reality OS” and “xrOS”, the operating system code names for Apple’s Reality headset.

However, what is less clear is whether the headset will be ready for the prime time at launch, or even before the end of 2023. A Financial Times report in March 2023 cited anonymous sources who claimed that while the operations team want to ship the new device as soon as possible, the design team would like to wait and launch a lighter and sleeker version several years down the line. Apple’s Tim Cook, said to be frustrated by the time it’s taken to get the product to market, has apparently overruled any calls for delay. The FT speculates that in Jony Ive’s day nobody would have gone against the recommendations of the design team.

Apple AR/VR headset: Name

A Mark Gurman Bloomberg report on May 18 claimed that his sources had indicated that ‘Reality’ will be part of the brand, with the first iteration of the headset being called Reality Pro and a more affordable model, that will launch in 2025 being named Reality Once.

It is unclear what the operating system will be called. A company called “Deep Dive LLC,” believed to be a shell company for Apple to protect secret projects, filed for trademark on “xrOS” in early May. It then later filed one for “xrProOS.” A company named “Immersive Health Solutions LLC” filed for trademarks on “RealityproOS” while a company by the name of “Realityo Systems LLC” filed for the term “realOS.” Fujitsu had a trademark on “realOS” since 2006, but that trademark was acquired by Realityo Systems LLC in 2022. Apple often uses small shell companies like these to secure trademarks and the like prior to the announcement of a new product or service.

Apple AR/VR headset: Price

The headset is not expected to actually ship until later this year (and will be an expensive, limited-quantity item at the start).

As far as pricing is concerned, rumors suggest that the first iteration could be an extremely expensive device. Rumors from Bloomberg suggest a price of around $3,000, which will almost certainly keep the product from achieving mass appeal. The next version of the Reality Pro is said to be a significantly cost-reduced model, due a year or two after the first. That model should cut the price in half.

A report by XRDailyNews in late May 2023 indicated that the materials used for the Apple headset will cost around $1,500–the devices will of course cost a lot more than that, due to research and development costs, production, shipping, distribution, and other factors. In comparison the Meta Quest materials cost around $750.

Apple AR/VR headset: What will it do…

We can only speculate at this stage about what Apple’s rumored headset will do or be, and whether there is even need for such a device.

At least some people have, apparently, seen the device and have good things to say. For example, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey says it’s “so good” and a source of Evan Blass @evleaks on Twitter was initially unimpressed by its “‘underwhelming’ capabilities”, but is now “blown away“.

The Apple headset is so good.

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) May 14, 2023

It’s not clear which technology the headset will showcase: AR, VR, MR, XR are all different forms of ‘reality’ that the headset could present to us. Which one will it be or will it be all of them?

• VR = Virtual Reality (completely replaces your view)
• AR = Augmented Reality (overlays real world with graphics and information)
• MR = Mixed Reality (combining AR and VR)
• XR = Extended Reality (combining AR, VR and MR)

It seems most likely that we can expect a device that combines AR and VR, although what benefits such a combination would result in aren’t clear. For example, the headset could overlay directions on the real world image of the street in front of you, but would a user want to wear a headset if it restricted their view of the outside world? An alternative use could be to join a conference call, but why would meeting people in a virtual environment be any better than watching people on a screen?

Existing devices from the competition include the Microsoft HoloLens and gaming headsets, such as the PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 2. The HoloLens is really meant for industries such as healthcare and manufacturing, rather than consumer use (and has a price to match). The gaming headsets are consumer focused, but Apple’s gaming prowess is debatable.

Existing Apple apps will be part of xrOS. Apple is said to be focused on various apps and how they can be used with its headset. Alongside games, we can expect Apple to present users with the Books, TV, FaceTime and more apps as well as the ability to access email and messages, and apparently use Fitness and meditation apps. We can’t imagine many people will want to do a workout with a headset on though…

Apple AR/VR headset: How it will work

Rumors and leaks have suggested that Apple’s headset will incorporate the following technology:

Advanced eye and hand tracking are said to be key features of the device–differentiators to set Reality Pro apart from rival devices. Several external cameras will monitor hand movements, and internal sensors will see where your eyes are looking. You’ll be able to control something simply by looking at it, and then pinching your thumb and index finger together to select it. There will be no controllers or other pointing devices.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in May 2023 claimed that the user’s surroundings will be displayed on screen while an outward-facing display will show eye movement and facial expressions.

The headset will also incorporate gyroscopes and sensors to adjust what you see based on the direction you are facing.

Text input will be done by voice, or using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac keyboard. Eventually, users may be able to simply type in the air to input text, but Apple is apparently still working on that feature and isn’t expected to have it available for launch. Unlike Apple Watch, an iPhone will not be required to set up or use Reality Pro.

The headset will apparently be able to smoothly transition between AR and VR modes by dialling a digital crown, can serve as an external display for an connected Mac, and perform many of the functions of an iPhone or iPad.

Apple AR/VR headset: Design

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s sources, Apple had initially wanted the headset to be similar to “a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses” that “would feel more like a fashion accessory than a computer strapped to your face.” However, as per an 18 May 2023 report, Gurman claims the first iteration of the headset will be more like virtual reality (VR) “ski goggles.”

This confirms other reports that have indicated that, while the ultimate goal of Apple’s AR project is apparently to produce a pair of fashionable smart glasses, the first version will reportedly be much bigger than that, weighing between 300-400 grams, according to Ming-Chi Kuo.

The first-generation Apple headset is therefore expected to be an Oculus-style headset with a knit mesh-wrapped body similar to the AirPods Max. It could look something like a sleeker version of Google’s Daydream headset, which also had a soft fabric body.

Apple has filed a patent application for a “head-mounted display unit” that detailed several areas of adjustment, suggesting comfort will be an area of focus.

Apple will also want to make the headset as light as possible. Supposedly the device is made of aluminum, glass, and carbon fiber to minimize weight. In January 2022 Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple will be using “pancake” lenses to keep the weight and bulk down.

In order to keep the headset weight down and improve comfort, the headset will require an external battery pack to use. It is said to be similar to the iPhone MagSafe Battery Pack–around the size of a deck of cards. The pack will recharge via USB-C and connect to the headset via a proprietary round magnetic connector that you twist clockwise to lock into place so it doesn’t come off during use. The pack is said to last around two hours, so you’ll have to use another one for longer sessions.

Curiously, Kuo says Apple is already working on a second-generation model (via 9to5Mac) expected to launch in 2024 with a “significantly lighter” and “updated industrial” design.

The New York Times reported in June that the headset “looks like a pair of ski goggles.” The Information says a small digital crown-like wheel on the side will let users seamlessly switch between fully virtual (VR) and seeing their surroundings (AR).

Freelancer.com held a contest for artists to create concepts of what the headset might look like. Take a look at the designs. The winner of the contest was Ahmed Chenni.

Apple AR/VR headset: Audio

According to a report by The Information, the latency for most wireless earbuds or headphones is too high for its purposes, so users will have to use one of two solutions. One is a headband with integrated speakers (much like that on the Meta Quest Pro), the other is to use recent AirPods models, which can enter an “ultra-low latency” mode when connected to the headset. The headset apparently contains the H2 processors (found in the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro).

Apple AR/VR headset: Displays

Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants, claims to have seen the display specs for the AR headset. He claims the headset (which will be Micro OLED) will feature:

• Two 1.41 inch screens (measured diagonally)
• 4,000ppi per eye
• More than 5,000 nits of brightness (peak brightness)

You want more, I will give you more: Micro OLED specs for Apple’s AR/VR headset:
1.41″ in diagonal
4000 PPI
>5000 nits of brightness

— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) May 30, 2023

These are impressive specs. The PlayStation VR2 headset offers a ppi of around 850 per screen. The HoloLens had a max brightness of 500 nits. None of the current devices on the market use Micro OLED, which offers better brightness and black levels than mini LED.

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s glasses are rumored to handle both virtual and augmented reality via a pair of high-resolution OLED 4K screens made by Sony, including eye-tracking technology. The headset will reportedly feature more than a dozen cameras and sensors, according to The Information, which will project a real-world view onto the screens as if you were looking through clear glass. It will presumably use either OLED or mini LED and incorporate Apple’s Ceramic Shield coating as well.

In January, Display Supply Chain Consultants reported that the headset will have “three display modules” comprised of two Micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The AMOLED display is apparently a low-refresh display that faces outward, to show other people your facial expression and reduce the awkwardness of interacting with people wearing the headset.

Small internal motors are said to automatically adjust the lenses and displays to match the users’ IPD (inter-pupillary distance, which is how far apart your eyes are), giving a full field of view of 120 degrees.

Apple AR/VR headset: Processor and specs

According to Kuo (via MacRumors), Apple’s AR headset will have two processors, with the higher-end processor being a sort of variant on the M2 processor used in Macs and iPads, and the secondary chip responsible for graphics and sensor-related functions for mixed reality. That second chip will be called the “Reality Processor” according to trademark applications. The sounds like a lot of processing power for a headset, but if the headset needs to power a pair of 4K displays, it will need a hefty chip. Reports also say that it will need to be tethered to an iPhone, much like the original Apple Watch.

Kuo also reported that the headset will support Wi-Fi 6E, which is also rumored to come to the iPhone 14. It will also presumably have at least 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. We don’t know anything yet about the battery life, but Kuo says improving battery life will be a focus of the second-generation model. Kuo reports that the headset will come with the same 96W power adapter as the MacBook Pro, which suggests it will have a big battery.

The Information says the device is powered by a main SoC with CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage, along with a secondary custom image signal processor that stitches together all the inputs from all the cameras into a single representation of the outside world, and it communicates with the SoC via a custom ultra-low-latency streaming codec developed by Apple.

The headset is said too employ both short-range and long-range LiDAR to develop a 3D map of your surroundings.

Apple AR/VR headset: Apps and software

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s headset will also be able to handle both AR and VR applications, which opens the headset up to a variety of apps and services.

A Bloomberg report in April 2023 indicates that Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality” as well as developing AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. These apps are said to be updated to make use of the mixed reality capabilities of the headset and look like their iPad counterparts.

Apparently every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone/iPad is going to get a custom app for the Reality Pro, including:

• Books
• Calendars
• Camera
• Contacts
• FaceTime – create a digital avatar and meet other users in a virtual meeting room.
• Fitness – watch a fitness instructor in VR while you work out in a virtual location (might be difficult to work out wearing a headset).
• Files
• Freeform
• GarageBand
• Home
• iMovie
• Keynote
• Mail
• Maps
• Messaging
• Notes
• Pages
• Photos
• Reminders
• Music
• News
• Numbers
• Safari
• Stocks
• TV – allowing users to view video content in a ‘virtual theater’ or other virtual settings like the desert or moon.
• Weather

The headset is expected to come with new versions of core apps like Messages and Maps, and reports claim that Apple recently enlisted the head of engineering for its iWork productivity apps, Notes app, and Apple News to work on the headset.

Gurman suggests that the headset will be able to run multiple apps at the same time in floating windows. Apps can be automatically opened as you enter a specific location as well.

Gaming is meant to be a major category for the Reality Pro. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also said in December 2021 that gaming could have “a strong focus” on the platform as well as “media consumption.”

Apple will also surely have apps dedicated to AR, such as the Measure app and things like the tool that lets you see a 3D render of Apple products before you buy it. In a December report, Gurman said the iPhone’s Animojis and VR FaceTime could be positioned as “the new-age Zoom.”

Apple is expected to feature advanced FaceTime-based video conferencing and virtual meeting rooms that will realistically render a user’s face and body in virtual reality. Two users, each with a Reality Pro headset, could have a virtual meeting and feel like they’re in the same room, it is said. This requires a lot of processing power and will therefore only be available in one-on-one chats; additional users would be displayed as icons or Memoji.

The New York Times reported in June that Apple “has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau” to develop content for its upcoming headset. The report said Favreau is “working to bring (Prehistoric Planet’s) dinosaurs to life on the headset.”

We’re told that we can expect a software development kit and App Store for third-party applications as well.

Apple AR/VR headset: Will it be a success?

According to Mark Gurman, Apple VIPs such as Craig Federighi and Johny Srouji are skeptical about the headset being a success. Apple has apparently adjusted its goal of selling three million units a year down to 900,000.

Computer Accessories

It’s looking more and more like Apple’s next big thing won’t be something that fits in your pocket or a bag. Rather it could be another wearable device–specifically an Apple headset that provides augmented and virtual reality.

This strongly rumored Apple VR headset has been dubbed “Reality Pro”, but nobody knows for sure what Apple will call the headset, or for that matter, what the Apple headset will do, but a combination of VR and AR looks likely to be offered. Analyst Ming Chi-Kuo said back in 2021 that Apple’s “goal is to replace the ‌iPhone‌ with AR in 10 years.”

Here’s everything we know so far about Apple’s rumored mixed-reality headset which could arrive in 2023–perhaps as soon as WWDC on June 5.

Apple AR/VR headset: Latest rumors

May 30, 2023: Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants claims to have received the final display specs for the AR headset. He says it will feature a 1.41-inch 4K display for each eye.

May 22, 2023: Apple has apparently registered trademarks for “xrProOS“, “realityproOS“, and “realOS” through shell companies (a common tactic with Apple for unannounced products).

May 18, 2023: Mark Gurman discusses Apple’s uncertainty as to how successful the headset project will be in a Bloomberg report.

May 16, 2023: Apple appears to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using the name of a shell company.

May 15, 2023: Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims Apple is “well prepared” for next month’s Reality Pro announcement.

April 24 2023: Mark Gurman reports that the battery pack, which is required for operation, is about the size of the MagSafe Battery Pack (about the same as a deck of cards). It has an integrated cable that cannot be removed, and the cable has a magnetic attachment to the headset that “locks in” with a clockwise turn to keep it from being knocked off while in use.

Apple AR/VR headset: Release date

The most recent rumors come primarily from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who reports that the operating system (xrOS) and other software development for the headset are now in high gear with a release date aimed for 2023. A February 2023 report from Gurman indicates that Apple will unveil the headset at WWDC in June, with a consumer release later in the year.

So we could see Apple unveil its Reality Pro headset at WWDC during the keynote on June 5. There may be a longer wait until the device goes on sale though.

There is some evidence that Apple is gearing up to launch the device soon. The company is presumed to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using a shell company: Deep Dive, which has previously been involved in xrOS trademark activity. Signs that this is Apple include the use of Apple’s SF Pro typeface for the letters. The trademark application indicates that Apple is using xrOS not realityOS for the name of the operating system. Apple has also registered trademarks for “xrProOS”, “realityproOS”, and “realOS”.

In January 2023 Apple released a preview version of a “Devices” app for Windows PCs (in which one would manage iPhones and other devices on a Windows PC as iTunes is phased out; Macs use Finder for this task) and Twitter user @aaronp613 discovered references in the code of this release to “Reality OS” and “xrOS”, the operating system code names for Apple’s Reality headset.

Apple AR/VR headset: Name

A Mark Gurman Bloomberg report on May 18 claimed that his sources had indicated that “Reality” will be part of the brand, with the first iteration of the headset being called Reality Pro and a more affordable model, that will launch in 2025 being named Reality One.

It is unclear what the operating system will be called. A company called “Deep Dive LLC,” believed to be a shell company for Apple to protect secret projects, filed for a trademark on “xrOS” in early May. It then later filed one for “xrProOS.” A company named “Immersive Health Solutions LLC” filed for trademarks on “RealityproOS” while a company by the name of “Realityo Systems LLC” filed for the term “realOS.” Fujitsu had a trademark on “realOS” since 2006, but that trademark was acquired by Realityo Systems LLC in 2022. Apple often uses small shell companies like these to secure trademarks and the like prior to the announcement of a new product or service.

Apple AR/VR headset: Price

The headset is not expected to actually ship until later this year (and will be an expensive, limited-quantity item at the start).

As far as pricing is concerned, rumors suggest that the first iteration could be an extremely expensive device. Rumors from Bloomberg suggest a price of around $3,000, which will almost certainly keep the product from achieving mass appeal. The next version of the Reality Pro is said to be a significantly cost-reduced model, due a year or two after the first. That model should cut the price in half.

A report by XRDailyNews in late May 2023 indicated that the materials used for the Apple headset will cost around $1,500–the devices will of course cost a lot more than that, due to research and development costs, production, shipping, distribution, and other factors. In comparison, the Meta Quest materials cost around $750.

Apple AR/VR headset: Fearures and functionality

We can only speculate at this stage about what Apple’s rumored headset will do or be, and whether there is even need for such a device.

At least some people have, apparently, seen the device and have good things to say. For example, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey says it’s “so good” and a source of Evan Blass @evleaks on Twitter was initially unimpressed by its “‘underwhelming’ capabilities”, but is now “blown away“.

The Apple headset is so good.

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) May 14, 2023

It’s not clear which technology the headset will showcase: AR, VR, MR, XR are all different forms of ‘reality’ that the headset could present to us. Which one will it be or will it be all of them?

• VR = Virtual Reality (completely replaces your view)
• AR = Augmented Reality (overlays real world with graphics and information)
• MR = Mixed Reality (combining AR and VR)
• XR = Extended Reality (combining AR, VR and MR)

It seems most likely that we can expect a device that combines AR and VR, although what benefits such a combination would result in aren’t clear. For example, the headset could overlay directions on the real world image of the street in front of you, but would a user want to wear a headset if it restricted their view of the outside world? An alternative use could be to join a conference call, but why would meeting people in a virtual environment be any better than watching people on a screen?

Existing devices from the competition include the Microsoft HoloLens and gaming headsets, such as the PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 2. The HoloLens is really meant for industries such as healthcare and manufacturing, rather than consumer use (and has a price to match). The gaming headsets are consumer focused, but Apple’s gaming prowess is debatable.

Existing Apple apps will be part of xrOS. Apple is said to be focused on various apps and how they can be used with its headset. Alongside games, we can expect Apple to present users with the Books, TV, FaceTime and more apps as well as the ability to access email and messages, and apparently use Fitness and meditation apps. We can’t imagine many people will want to do a workout with a headset on though…

Apple AR/VR headset: Technology

Rumors and leaks have suggested that Apple’s headset will incorporate the following technology:

Advanced eye and hand tracking are said to be key features of the device–differentiators to set Reality Pro apart from rival devices. Several external cameras will monitor hand movements, and internal sensors will see where your eyes are looking. You’ll be able to control something simply by looking at it, and then pinching your thumb and index finger together to select it. There will be no controllers or other pointing devices.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in May 2023 claimed that the user’s surroundings will be displayed on the screen while an outward-facing display will show eye movement and facial expressions.

The headset will also incorporate gyroscopes and sensors to adjust what you see based on the direction you are facing.

Text input will be done by voice, or using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac keyboard. Eventually, users may be able to simply type in the air to input text, but Apple is apparently still working on that feature and isn’t expected to have it available for launch. Unlike Apple Watch, an iPhone will not be required to set up or use Reality Pro.

The headset will apparently be able to smoothly transition between AR and VR modes by dialing a digital crown, can serve as an external display for a connected Mac, and perform many of the functions of an iPhone or iPad.

Apple AR/VR headset: Design

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s sources, Apple had initially wanted the headset to be similar to “a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses” that “would feel more like a fashion accessory than a computer strapped to your face.” However, as per an 18 May 2023 report, Gurman claims the first iteration of the headset will be more like virtual reality (VR) “ski goggles.”

This confirms other reports that have indicated that, while the ultimate goal of Apple’s AR project is apparently to produce a pair of fashionable smart glasses, the first version will reportedly be much bigger than that, weighing between 300-400 grams, according to Ming-Chi Kuo.

The first-generation Apple headset is therefore expected to be an Oculus-style headset with a knit mesh-wrapped body similar to the AirPods Max. It could look something like a sleeker version of Google’s Daydream headset, which also had a soft fabric body.

Apple has filed a patent application for a “head-mounted display unit” that detailed several areas of adjustment, suggesting comfort will be an area of focus.

Apple will also want to make the headset as light as possible. Supposedly the device is made of aluminum, glass, and carbon fiber to minimize weight. In January 2022 Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple will be using “pancake” lenses to keep the weight and bulk down.

In order to keep the headset weight down and improve comfort, the headset will require an external battery pack to use. It is said to be similar to the iPhone MagSafe Battery Pack–around the size of a deck of cards. The pack will recharge via USB-C and connect to the headset via a proprietary round magnetic connector that you twist clockwise to lock into place so it doesn’t come off during use. The pack is said to last around two hours, so you’ll have to use another one for longer sessions.

Curiously, Kuo says Apple is already working on a second-generation model (via 9to5Mac) expected to launch in 2024 with a “significantly lighter” and “updated industrial” design.

The New York Times reported in June that the headset “looks like a pair of ski goggles.” The Information says a small digital crown-like wheel on the side will let users seamlessly switch between fully virtual (VR) and seeing their surroundings (AR).

Freelancer.com held a contest for artists to create concepts of what the headset might look like. Take a look at the designs. The winner of the contest was Ahmed Chenni.

Apple AR/VR headset: Audio

According to a report by The Information, the latency for most wireless earbuds or headphones is too high for its purposes, so users will have to use one of two solutions. One is a headband with integrated speakers (much like that on the Meta Quest Pro), the other is to use recent AirPods models, which can enter an “ultra-low latency” mode when connected to the headset. The headset apparently contains the H2 processors (found in the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro).

Apple AR/VR headset: Displays

Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants, claims to have seen the display specs for the AR headset. He claims the headset (which will be Micro OLED) will feature:

• Two 1.41 inch screens (measured diagonally)
• 4,000ppi per eye
• More than 5,000 nits of brightness (peak brightness)

You want more, I will give you more: Micro OLED specs for Apple’s AR/VR headset:
1.41″ in diagonal
4000 PPI
>5000 nits of brightness

— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) May 30, 2023

These are impressive specs. The PlayStation VR2 headset offers a ppi of around 850 per screen. The HoloLens had a max brightness of 500 nits. None of the current devices on the market use Micro OLED, which offers better brightness and black levels than mini LED.

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s glasses are rumored to handle both virtual and augmented reality via a pair of high-resolution OLED 4K screens made by Sony, including eye-tracking technology. The headset will reportedly feature more than a dozen cameras and sensors, according to The Information, which will project a real-world view onto the screens as if you were looking through clear glass. It will presumably use either OLED or mini LED and incorporate Apple’s Ceramic Shield coating as well.

In January, Display Supply Chain Consultants reported that the headset will have “three display modules” comprised of two Micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The AMOLED display is apparently a low-refresh display that faces outward, to show other people your facial expression and reduce the awkwardness of interacting with people wearing the headset.

Small internal motors are said to automatically adjust the lenses and displays to match the users’ IPD (inter-pupillary distance, which is how far apart your eyes are), giving a full field of view of 120 degrees.

Apple AR/VR headset: Processor and specs

According to Kuo (via MacRumors), Apple’s AR headset will have two processors, with the higher-end processor being a sort of variant on the M2 processor used in Macs and iPads, and the secondary chip responsible for graphics and sensor-related functions for mixed reality. That second chip will be called the “Reality Processor” according to trademark applications. The sounds like a lot of processing power for a headset, but if the headset needs to power a pair of 4K displays, it will need a hefty chip. Reports also say that it will need to be tethered to an iPhone, much like the original Apple Watch.

Kuo also reported that the headset will support Wi-Fi 6E, which is also rumored to come to the iPhone 14. It will also presumably have at least 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. We don’t know anything yet about the battery life, but Kuo says improving battery life will be a focus of the second-generation model. Kuo reports that the headset will come with the same 96W power adapter as the MacBook Pro, which suggests it will have a big battery.

The Information says the device is powered by a main SoC with CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage, along with a secondary custom image signal processor that stitches together all the inputs from all the cameras into a single representation of the outside world, and it communicates with the SoC via a custom ultra-low-latency streaming codec developed by Apple.

The headset is said too employ both short-range and long-range LiDAR to develop a 3D map of your surroundings.

Apple AR/VR headset: Apps and software

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s headset will also be able to handle both AR and VR applications, which opens the headset up to a variety of apps and services.

A Bloomberg report in April 2023 indicates that Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality” as well as developing AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. These apps are said to be updated to make use of the mixed reality capabilities of the headset and look like their iPad counterparts.

Apparently, every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone/iPad is going to get a custom app for the Reality Pro, including:

• Books
• Calendars
• Camera
• Contacts
• FaceTime – create a digital avatar and meet other users in a virtual meeting room.
• Fitness – watch a fitness instructor in VR while you work out in a virtual location (might be difficult to work out wearing a headset).
• Files
• Freeform
• GarageBand
• Home
• iMovie
• Keynote
• Mail
• Maps
• Messaging
• Notes
• Pages
• Photos
• Reminders
• Music
• News
• Numbers
• Safari
• Stocks
• TV – allowing users to view video content in a ‘virtual theater’ or other virtual settings like the desert or moon.
• Weather

The headset is expected to come with new versions of core apps like Messages and Maps and reports claim that Apple recently enlisted the head of engineering for its iWork productivity apps, Notes app, and Apple News to work on the headset.

Gurman suggests that the headset will be able to run multiple apps at the same time in floating windows. Apps can be automatically opened as you enter a specific location as well.

Gaming is meant to be a major category for Reality Pro. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also said in December 2021 that gaming could have “a strong focus” on the platform as well as “media consumption.”

Apple will also surely have apps dedicated to AR, such as the Measure app and things like the tool that lets you see a 3D render of Apple products before you buy it. In a December report, Gurman said the iPhone’s Animojis and VR FaceTime could be positioned as “the new-age Zoom.”

Apple is expected to feature advanced FaceTime-based video conferencing and virtual meeting rooms that will realistically render a user’s face and body in virtual reality. Two users, each with a Reality Pro headset, could have a virtual meeting and feel like they’re in the same room, it is said. This requires a lot of processing power and will therefore only be available in one-on-one chats; additional users would be displayed as icons or Memoji.

The New York Times reported in June that Apple “has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau” to develop content for its upcoming headset. The report said Favreau is “working to bring (Prehistoric Planet’s) dinosaurs to life on the headset.”

We’re told that we can expect a software development kit and App Store for third-party applications as well.

Computer Accessories

Welcome to our weekly Apple Breakfast column, which includes all the Apple news you missed last week in a handy bite-sized roundup. We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a Monday morning cup of coffee or tea, but it’s cool if you want to give it a read during lunch or dinner hours too.

One week to go

There are just seven days to go until Apple’s WWDC 2023 keynote presentation, the second biggest event in the company’s calendar and the first of any kind since last fall. This time next week, the lucky few will be attending the watch party at Apple Park (and looking forward to their special tour; no, of course, I’m not envious), while the rest of us will be huddled around our monitors listening to the latest announcements. Both groups, it’s fair to say, will have high expectations.

From the sounds of things–and for all Apple’s ruthless efforts to keep things secret, a lot has leaked–there will be some big news to justify the hype. The problem is that the news, as big as it is, will only be relevant to a small audience.

When you work in the media, you quickly learn to identify the things that are interesting to the largest number of people. On Macworld we are well aware that an article about the iPhone will be relevant to many more people than one about the HomePod, and is consequently likely, all things being equal, to get more pageviews; the former is simply more widely popular than the latter. It’s more mainstream. Following a similar logic, at WWDC each year Apple tends to focus on the software that runs on the products with the largest user base. For this reason iOS tends to be the marquee section of the presentation. There are lots of iPhone owners out there, and they want to know what new features are on their way.

Now, I’m not saying that Apple is going to ignore the iPhone completely at WWDC 2023. iOS 17 is expected to include a raft of new features, including a clever smart display function and, very likely, the momentous ability to install apps from third-party stores without jailbreaking. But most pundits agree that this is going to be a quiet update with no “tentpole improvement.” It’ll be about fixing bugs and improving reliability, with a few “nice to have” new features chucked in as a bonus.

Meanwhile, macOS appears to be headed for a dull June–so much so that my colleague has wondered if Apple cares about macOS anymore. “Our macOS 14 news hub has nothing,” he laments. “The chirping crickets just gave way to the sad trombone.” On the bright side, there’s the possibility of new Macs, such as a 15-inch MacBook Air and a Mac Pro (finally).

And these, remember, are the flagship products. iPhone and Mac, side by side, dragging Cupertino out of its 90s doldrums and making it the envy of Wall Street and Silicon Valley alike. Surely Apple has something to say about these titanic product lines that’s worth hearing? Perhaps not.

Instead, the highlights of WWDC 2023 are likely to sit in two categories: the mixed reality headset, and watchOS 10. Reality Pro is certainly an interesting prospect to me, given that it’s an entirely new product line that could eventually be more important to Apple’s fortunes than the iPhone. It’s real futurist, risk-taking stuff. The problem is that, for now, it’s niche. A TrendForce report last week predicted that Apple’s headset will initially be targeted at developers, not consumers and that this year’s shipments are likely to fall short of 100,000 units. By Apple’s standards, this is peanuts, and the product is largely irrelevant to the vast majority of people watching the keynote.

The Apple Watch isn’t quite as niche as that, but it’s nowhere near as mainstream as the iPhone or even the iPad. Depending on which research firm you ask, there are probably between 1 billion and 1.5 billion iPhone users in the world right now. The Apple Watch user base, by contrast, sits somewhere between 100 million (which the line officially passed in 2021) and 200 million, the approximate total number ever sold. And so it’s debatable how much the WWDC audience will care about even a fundamental rethink of the way we control our Apple Watches.

I’ve argued in the past that a dull Apple event is better than no event, and I think it’s important for Apple to give proper attention to the products on the margins. Apple can’t make every event about the iPhone, any more than we can make every article about it. Aside from anything else, it needs to find the product that will take the iPhone’s place once the tills stop ringing.

But make no mistake: this is going to be the riskiest set of announcements Apple has made in years. A colossal global audience has been waiting a long time for this event. It would be bold, to say the least, to spend most of the event talking about one product whose sales get rolled in with home products and accessories, and another whose customer base for this year would fit in a large sports stadium.

Reviews corner

• Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPad hands-on: High-end tools for a low-end price.

Trending: Top stories

Apple is finally ready to admit the Apple Watch is all wrong.

Apple’s AI future could be a lot brighter than it seems, says Jason Snell.

Bungie’s Marathon revival is a missed opportunity for Apple and the Mac.

Jason Cross argues that Warner Bros. Discovery blew it with the new Max app for Apple TV.

ChatGPT can give you advice on buying a new Mac. It just happens to be bad advice.

Samsung’s new Smart Monitor M8 is the next best thing to a 32-inch iMac.

The rumor mill

A leaked list of key players in Apple’s headset team reveals the project’s misguided priorities.

Apple has given us a huge WWDC clue by inviting the VR press to the keynote.

The iPhone 15 may not need a MagSafe-certified charger for 15-watt fast charging.

And the year after, Apple reportedly plans to switch back to a vertical camera layout on the iPhone 16.

Patent activity suggests a future Apple Pencil could have Find My support.

Podcast of the week

On this episode of the Macworld Podcast, it’s all about your hot takes! You have thoughts on the latest happenings in the world of Apple! Let’s hear what you have to say!

You can catch every episode of the Macworld Podcast on Spotify, Soundcloud, the Podcasts app, or our own site.

Software updates, bugs, and problems

No, iOS 16.5 hasn’t killed your iPhone’s battery.

New iOS and macOS updates have fixed severe flaws in iPhones and Macs from the past 10 years.

Look out: The watchOS 9.5 update might turn your Apple Watch screen green.

iOS 16.5 fixes a security hole that was supposedly addressed last year. Mind you, it also stops an Apple adapter working with some iPhones and iPads.

And with that, we’re done for this week’s Apple Breakfast. If you’d like to get regular roundups, sign up for our newsletters. You can also follow us on Twitter or on Facebook for discussion of breaking Apple news stories. See you next Monday, and stay Appley.

Apple

It’s looking more and more like Apple’s next big thing won’t be something that fits in your pocket or a bag. Rather it could be another wearable device–specifically an Apple headset that provides augmented and virtual reality.

this strongly rumored Apple VR headset has been dubbed “Reality Pro”, but nobody knows for sure what Apple will call it’s headset, or for that matter, what the Apple headset will do, but a combination of VR and AR looks likely to be offered. Analyst Ming Chi-Kuo said back in 2021 that Apple’s “goal is to replace the ‌iPhone‌ with AR in 10 years.”

Here’s everything we know so far about Apple’s rumored mixed-reality headset which could arrive in 2023–perhaps as soon as WWDC in June.

Apple AR/VR headset: Latest rumors

May 22, 2023: Apple has apparently registered trademarks for “xrProOS“, “realityproOS“, and “realOS” through shell companies (a common tactic with Apple for unannounced products).

May 18, 2023: Mark Gurman discusses Apple’s uncertainty as to how successful the headset project will be in a Bloomberg report.

May 16, 2023: Apple has trademarked xrOS in New Zealand, using a the name of a shell company.

May 15, 2023: Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims Apple is “well prepared” for next month’s Reality Pro announcement.

April 24 2023: Mark Gurman reports that the battery pack, which is required for operation, is about the size of the MagSafe Battery Pack (about the same as a deck of cards). It has an integrated cable that cannot be removed, and the cable has a magnetic attachment to the headset that “locks in” with a clockwise turn to keep from being knocked off while in use.

Apple AR/VR headset: Release date

The most recent rumors come primarily from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who reports that the operating system (xrOS) and other software development for the headset is now in high gear with a release date aimed for 2023. A February 2023 update from Gurman indicates that Apple will unveil the headset at WWDC in June, with a consumer release later in the year.

There is some evidence that Apple is gearing up to launch the device soon. The company is presumed to have trademarked xrOS in New Zealand using a shell company: Deep Dive, which has previously been involved in xrOS trademark activity. Signs that this is Apple include the use of Apple’s SF Pro typeface for the letters. The trademark application indicates that Apple is using xrOS not realityOS for the name of the operating system.

In January 2023 Apple released a preview version of a “Devices” app for Windows PCs (in which one would manage iPhones and other devices on a Windows PC as iTunes is phased out; Macs use Finder for this task) and Twitter user @aaronp613 discovered references in the code of this release to “Reality OS” and “xrOS”, the operating system code names for Apple’s Reality headset.

However, what is less clear is whether the headset will be ready for the prime time at launch, or even before the end of 2023. A Financial Times report in March 2023 cited anonymous sources who claimed that while the operations team want to ship the new device as soon as possible, the design team would like to wait and launch a lighter and sleeker version several years down the line. Apple’s Tim Cook, said to be frustrated by the time it’s taken to get the product to market, has apparently overruled any calls for delay. The FT speculates that in Jony Ive’s day nobody would have gone against the recommendations of the design team.

Apple AR/VR headset: Name

A Mark Gurman Bloomberg report on May 18 claimed that his sources had indicated that ‘Reality’ will be part of the brand, with the first iteration of the headset being called Reality Pro and a more affordable model, that will launch in 2025 being named Reality Once.

It is unclear what the operating system will be called. A company called “Deep Dive LLC,” believed to be a shell company for Apple to protect secret projects, filed for trademark on “xrOS” in early May. It then later filed one for “xrProOS.” A company named “Immersive Health Solutions LLC” filed for trademarks on “RealityproOS” while a company by the name of “Realityo Systems LLC” filed for the term “realOS.” Fujitsu had a trademark on “realOS” since 2006, but that trademark was acquired by Realityo Systems LLC in 2022. Apple often uses small shell companies like these to secure trademarks and the like prior to the announcement of a new product or service.

Apple AR/VR headset: Price

The headset is not expected to actually ship until later this year (and will be an expensive, limited-quantity item at the start).

As far as pricing is concerned, rumors suggest that the first iteration could be an extremely expensive device. Rumors from Bloomberg suggest a price of around $3,000, which will almost certainly keep the product from achieving mass appeal. The next version of the Reality Pro is said to be a significantly cost-reduced model, due a year or two after the first. That model should cut the price in half.

Apple AR/VR headset: What will it do…

We can only speculate at this stage about what Apple’s rumored headset will do or be, and whether there is even need for such a device.

At least some people have, apparently, seen the device and have good things to say. For example, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey says it’s “so good” and a source of Evan Blass @evleaks on Twitter was initially unimpressed by its “‘underwhelming’ capabilities”, but is now “blown away“.

The Apple headset is so good.

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) May 14, 2023

It’s not clear which technology the headset will showcase: AR, VR, MR, XR are all different forms of ‘reality’ that the headset could present to us. Which one will it be or will it be all of them?

• VR = Virtual Reality (completely replaces your view)
• AR = Augmented Reality (overlays real world with graphics and information)
• MR = Mixed Reality (combining AR and VR)
• XR = Extended Reality (combining AR, VR and MR)

It seems most likely that we can expect a device that combines AR and VR, although what benefits such a combination would result in aren’t clear. For example, the headset could overlay directions on the real world image of the street in front of you, but would a user want to wear a headset if it restricted their view of the outside world? An alternative use could be to join a conference call, but why would meeting people in a virtual environment be any better than watching people on a screen?

Existing devices from the competition include the Microsoft HoloLens and gaming headsets, such as the PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 2. The HoloLens is really meant for industries such as healthcare and manufacturing, rather than consumer use (and has a price to match). The gaming headsets are consumer focused, but Apple’s gaming prowess is debatable.

Existing Apple apps will be part of xrOS. Apple is said to be focused on various apps and how they can be used with its headset. Alongside games, we can expect Apple to present users with the Books, TV, FaceTime and more apps as well as the ability to access email and messages, and apparently use Fitness and meditation apps. We can’t imagine many people will want to do a workout with a headset on though…

Apple AR/VR headset: How it will work

Rumors and leaks have suggested that Apple’s headset will incorporate the following technology:

Advanced eye and hand tracking are said to be key features of the device–differentiators to set Reality Pro apart from rival devices. Several external cameras will monitor hand movements, and internal sensors will see where your eyes are looking. You’ll be able to control something simply by looking at it, and then pinching your thumb and index finger together to select it. There will be no controllers or other pointing devices.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in May 2023 claimed that the user’s surroundings will be displayed on screen while an outward-facing display will show eye movement and facial expressions.

The headset will also incorporate gyroscopes and sensors to adjust what you see based on the direction you are facing.

Text input will be done by voice, or using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac keyboard. Eventually, users may be able to simply type in the air to input text, but Apple is apparently still working on that feature and isn’t expected to have it available for launch. Unlike Apple Watch, an iPhone will not be required to set up or use Reality Pro.

The headset will apparently be able to smoothly transition between AR and VR modes by dialling a digital crown, can serve as an external display for an connected Mac, and perform many of the functions of an iPhone or iPad.

Apple AR/VR headset: Design

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman’s sources, Apple had initially wanted the headset to be similar to “a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses” that “would feel more like a fashion accessory than a computer strapped to your face.” However, as per an 18 May 2023 report, Gurman claims the first iteration of the headset will be more like virtual reality (VR) “ski goggles.”

This confirms other reports that have indicated that, while the ultimate goal of Apple’s AR project is apparently to produce a pair of fashionable smart glasses, the first version will reportedly be much bigger than that, weighing between 300-400 grams, according to Ming-Chi Kuo.

The first-generation Apple headset is therefore expected to be an Oculus-style headset with a knit mesh-wrapped body similar to the AirPods Max. It could look something like a sleeker version of Google’s Daydream headset, which also had a soft fabric body.

Apple has filed a patent application for a “head-mounted display unit” that detailed several areas of adjustment, suggesting comfort will be an area of focus.

Apple will also want to make the headset as light as possible. Supposedly the device is made of aluminum, glass, and carbon fiber to minimize weight. In January 2022 Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple will be using “pancake” lenses to keep the weight and bulk down.

In order to keep the headset weight down and improve comfort, the headset will require an external battery pack to use. It is said to be similar to the iPhone MagSafe Battery Pack–around the size of a deck of cards. The pack will recharge via USB-C and connect to the headset via a proprietary round magnetic connector that you twist clockwise to lock into place so it doesn’t come off during use. The pack is said to last around two hours, so you’ll have to use another one for longer sessions.

Curiously, Kuo says Apple is already working on a second-generation model (via 9to5Mac) expected to launch in 2024 with a “significantly lighter” and “updated industrial” design.

The New York Times reported in June that the headset “looks like a pair of ski goggles.” The Information says a small digital crown-like wheel on the side will let users seamlessly switch between fully virtual (VR) and seeing their surroundings (AR).

Freelancer.com held a contest for artists to create concepts of what the headset might look like. Take a look at the designs. The winner of the contest was Ahmed Chenni.

Apple AR/VR headset: Audio

According to a report by The Information, the latency for most wireless earbuds or headphones is too high for its purposes, so users will have to use one of two solutions. One is a headband with integrated speakers (much like that on the Meta Quest Pro), the other is to use recent AirPods models, which can enter an “ultra-low latency” mode when connected to the headset. The headset apparently contains the H2 processors (found in the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro).

Apple AR/VR headset: Displays

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s glasses are rumored to handle both virtual and augmented reality via a pair of high-resolution OLED 4K screens made by Sony, including eye-tracking technology. The headset will reportedly feature more than a dozen cameras and sensors, according to The Information, which will project a real-world view onto the screens as if you were looking through clear glass. It will presumably use either OLED or mini LED and incorporate Apple’s Ceramic Shield coating as well.

In January, Display Supply Chain Consultants reported that the headset will have “three display modules” comprised of two Micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The AMOLED display is apparently a low-refresh display that faces outward, to show other people your facial expression and reduce the awkwardness of interacting with people wearing the headset.

Small internal motors are said to automatically adjust the lenses and displays to match the users’ IPD (inter-pupillary distance, which is how far apart your eyes are), giving a full field of view of 120 degrees.

Apple AR/VR headset: Processor and specs

According to Kuo (via MacRumors), Apple’s AR headset will have two processors, with the higher-end processor being a sort of variant on the M2 processor used in Macs and iPads, and the secondary chip responsible for graphics and sensor-related functions for mixed reality. That second chip will be called the “Reality Processor” according to trademark applications. The sounds like a lot of processing power for a headset, but if the headset needs to power a pair of 4K displays, it will need a hefty chip. Reports also say that it will need to be tethered to an iPhone, much like the original Apple Watch.

Kuo also reported that the headset will support Wi-Fi 6E, which is also rumored to come to the iPhone 14. It will also presumably have at least 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. We don’t know anything yet about the battery life, but Kuo says improving battery life will be a focus of the second-generation model. Kuo reports that the headset will come with the same 96W power adapter as the MacBook Pro, which suggests it will have a big battery.

The Information says the device is powered by a main SoC with CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage, along with a secondary custom image signal processor that stitches together all the inputs from all the cameras into a single representation of the outside world, and it communicates with the SoC via a custom ultra-low-latency streaming codec developed by Apple.

The headset is said too employ both short-range and long-range LiDAR to develop a 3D map of your surroundings.

Apple AR/VR headset: Apps and software

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s headset will also be able to handle both AR and VR applications, which opens the headset up to a variety of apps and services.

A Bloomberg report in April 2023 indicates that Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality” as well as developing AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. These apps are said to be updated to make use of the mixed reality capabilities of the headset and look like their iPad counterparts.

Apparently every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone/iPad is going to get a custom app for the Reality Pro, including:

• Books
• Calendars
• Camera
• Contacts
• FaceTime – create a digital avatar and meet other users in a virtual meeting room.
• Fitness – watch a fitness instructor in VR while you work out in a virtual location (might be difficult to work out wearing a headset).
• Files
• Freeform
• GarageBand
• Home
• iMovie
• Keynote
• Mail
• Maps
• Messaging
• Notes
• Pages
• Photos
• Reminders
• Music
• News
• Numbers
• Safari
• Stocks
• TV – allowing users to view video content in a ‘virtual theater’ or other virtual settings like the desert or moon.
• Weather

The headset is expected to come with new versions of core apps like Messages and Maps, and reports claim that Apple recently enlisted the head of engineering for its iWork productivity apps, Notes app, and Apple News to work on the headset.

Gurman suggests that the headset will be able to run multiple apps at the same time in floating windows. Apps can be automatically opened as you enter a specific location as well.

Gaming is meant to be a major category for the Reality Pro. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also said in December 2021 that gaming could have “a strong focus” on the platform as well as “media consumption.”

Apple will also surely have apps dedicated to AR, such as the Measure app and things like the tool that lets you see a 3D render of Apple products before you buy it. In a December report, Gurman said the iPhone’s Animojis and VR FaceTime could be positioned as “the new-age Zoom.”

Apple is expected to feature advanced FaceTime-based video conferencing and virtual meeting rooms that will realistically render a user’s face and body in virtual reality. Two users, each with a Reality Pro headset, could have a virtual meeting and feel like they’re in the same room, it is said. This requires a lot of processing power and will therefore only be available in one-on-one chats; additional users would be displayed as icons or Memoji.

The New York Times reported in June that Apple “has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau” to develop content for its upcoming headset. The report said Favreau is “working to bring (Prehistoric Planet’s) dinosaurs to life on the headset.”

We’re told that we can expect a software development kit and App Store for third-party applications as well.

Apple AR/VR headset: Will it be a success?

According to Mark Gurman, Apple VIPs such as Craig Federighi and Johny Srouji are skeptical about the headset being a success. Apple has apparently adjusted its goal of selling three million units a year down to 900,000.

Computer Accessories

It’s looking more and more like Apple’s next big thing won’t be something that fits in your pocket or a bag. Rather it could be another wearable device–specifically a headset that provides augmented and virtual reality, this strongly rumored mixed-reality headset has been dubbed “Reality Pro”. Analyst Ming Chi-Kuo said in 2021 that Apple’s “goal is to replace the ‌iPhone‌ with AR in 10 years.” Here’s everything we know so far about Apple’s rumored mixed-reality headset which could be coming in 2023.

Apple AR/VR headset: Latest rumors

April 24 2023: Mark Gurman reports that the battery pack, which is required for operation, is about the size of the MagSafe Battery Pack (about the same as a deck of cards). It has an integrated cable that cannot be removed, and the cable has a magnetic attachment to the headset that “locks in” with a clockwise turn to keep from being knocked off while in use.

April 20 2023: Evan Blass @evleaks on Twitter, tweets that a person he knows who has been demoing the headset was initially unimpressed by its “‘underwhelming’ capabilities”, but is now “blown away“.

April 18, 2023: Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman shares details of the impressive range of software that will be included with the Apple headset.

March 30, 2023: Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted that Apple has pushed back the production to mid-to-late Q3 of 2023, which raises the possibility that it will not make an appearance at WWDC on June 5.

Because Apple isn’t very optimistic about the AR/MR headset announcement recreating the astounding “iPhone moment,” the mass production schedule for assembly has been pushed back by another 1-2 months to mid-to-late 3Q23. The delay also adds uncertainty to whether the new device…

— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) March 30, 2023

March 26, 2023: Mark Gurman reports that Apple held a private company headset demo for a select number of employees.

March 26, 2023: The New York Times reports that “dissension” has risen amongst the ranks of Apple employees about the viability of the headset as a platform.

March 13, 2023: Tim Cook apparently ‘overruled’ AR/VR headset design team’s objections to 2023 launch, according to a Financial Times report.

February 15, 2023: Mark Gurman reports that his sources tell him the mixed reality headset will not be ready for an unveiling in the spring, and will instead be unveiled at WWDC in June.

January 19, 2023: Mark Gurman indicated that Apple’s AR glasses are on hold due to technical issues.

Apple AR/VR headset: Release date

The most recent rumors come primarily from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who reports that the operating system (xrOS) and other software development for the headset is now in high gear with a release date aimed for 2023. A February 2023 update from Gurman indicates that Apple will unveil the headset at WWDC in June, with a consumer release later in the year.

There is some evidence that Apple is gearing up to launch the device. In January 2023 Apple released a preview version of a “Devices” app for Windows PCs (in which one would manage iPhones and other devices on a Windows PC as iTunes is phased out; Macs use Finder for this task) and Twitter user @aaronp613 discovered references in the code of this release to “Reality OS” and “xrOS”, the operating system code names for Apple’s Reality headset.

However, what is less clear is whether the headset will be ready for the prime time at launch, or even before the end of 2023. A Financial Times report in March 2023 cited anonymous sources who claimed that while the operations team want to ship the new device as soon as possible, the design team would like to wait and launch a lighter and sleeker version several years down the line. Apple’s Tim Cook, said to be frustrated by the time it’s taken to get the product to market, has apparently overruled any calls for delay. The FT speculates that in Jony Ive’s day nobody would have gone against the recommendations of the design team.

Apple AR/VR headset: Name

The headset is supposedly going to be called “Reality Pro,” though rumors about Apple’s final consumer brand names are notoriously sketchy.

Apple AR/VR headset: Price

The headset is not expected to actually ship until later this year (and will be an expensive, limited-quantity item at the start).

As far as pricing is concerned, rumors suggest that the first iteration could be an extremely expensive device. Rumors from Bloomberg suggest a price of around $3,000, which will almost certainly keep the product from achieving mass appeal. The next version of the Reality Pro is said to be a significantly cost-reduced model, due a year or two after the first. That model should cut the price in half.

Apple AR/VR headset: How it will work and what will it do…

We can only speculate at this stage about what Apple’s rumored headset will do or be, and whether there is even need for such a device.

It’s not even clear which technology the headset will showcase: AR, VR, MR, XR are all different forms of ‘reality’ that the headset could present to us. Which one will it be or will it be all of them?

• VR = Virtual Reality (completely replaces your view)
• AR = Augmented Reality (overlays real world with graphics and information)
• MR = Mixed Reality (combining AR and VR)
• XR = Extended Reality (combining AR, VR and MR)

It seems most likely that we can expect a device that combines AR and VR, although what benefits such a combination would result in aren’t clear. For example, the headset could overlay directions on the real world image of the street in front of you, but would a user want to wear a headset if it restricted their view of the outside world? An alternative use could be to join a conference call, but why would meeting people in a virtual environment be any better than watching people on a screen?

Existing devices from the competition include the Microsoft HoloLens and gaming headsets, such as the PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 2. The HoloLens is really meant for industries such as healthcare and manufacturing, rather than consumer use (and has a price to match). The gaming headsets are consumer focused, but Apple’s gaming prowess is debatable.

Apple is said to be focused on various apps and how they can be used with its headset, though. Alongside games, we can expect Apple to present users with the Books, TV, FaceTime, and apparently Fitness apps among others. We can’t imagine many people will want to do a workout with a headset on though…

Rumors and leaks have suggested that Apple’s headset will incorporate the following technology:

Advanced eye and hand tracking are said to be key features of the device–differentiators to set Reality Pro apart from rival devices. Several external cameras will monitor hand movements, and internal sensors will see where your eyes are looking. You’ll be able to control something simply by looking at it, and then pinching your thumb and index finger together to select it. There will be no controllers or other pointing devices.

The headset will also incorporate gyroscopes and sensors to adjust what you see based on the direction you are facing.

Text input will be done by voice, or using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac keyboard. Eventually, users may be able to simply type in the air to input text, but Apple is apparently still working on that feature and isn’t expected to have it available for launch. Unlike Apple Watch, an iPhone will not be required to set up or use Reality Pro.

The headset will apparently be able to smoothly transition between AR and VR modes by dialling a digital crown, can serve as an external display for an connected Mac, and perform many of the functions of an iPhone or iPad.

Apple AR/VR headset: Design

While the ultimate goal of Apple’s AR project is to produce a pair of fashionable smart glasses, the first version will reportedly be much bigger than that, weighing between 300-400 grams, according to Ming-Chi Kuo. According to reports, the first-generation Apple headset will be an Oculus-style headset with a knit mesh-wrapped body similar to the AirPods Max. It could look something like a sleeker version of Google’s Daydream headset, which also had a soft fabric body. A patent application for a “head-mounted display unit” also detailed several areas of adjustment, meaning comfort will be an area of focus. Supposedly the device is made of aluminum, glass, and carbon fiber to minimize weight.

However, we don’t know much else about the design of Apple’s AR device. While Jon Prosser reported that Apple is working on a prototype pair of AR glasses, more recent rumors suggest that a bona fide pair of glasses is likely still years away from production. In January, Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple will be using “pancake” lenses to keep the weight and bulk down. The current design is said to resemble high-tech ski goggles.

In order to keep the headset weight down and improve comfort, the headset will require an external battery pack to use. It is said to be similar to the iPhone MagSafe Battery Pack–around the size of a deck of cards. The pack will recharge via USB-C and connect to the headset via a proprietary round magnetic connector that you twist clockwise to lock into place so it doesn’t come off during use. The pack is said to last around two hours, so you’ll have to use another one for longer sessions.

Curiously, Kuo says Apple is already working on a second-generation model (via 9to5Mac) expected to launch in 2024 with a “significantly lighter” and “updated industrial” design.

The New York Times reported in June that the headset “looks like a pair of ski goggles.” The Information says a small digital crown-like wheel on the side will let users seamlessly switch between fully virtual (VR) and seeing their surroundings (AR).

Freelancer.com held a contest for artists to create concepts of what the headset might look like. Take a look at the designs. The winner of the contest was Ahmed Chenni.

Apple AR/VR headset: Audio

According to a report by The Information, the latency for most wireless earbuds or headphones is too high for its purposes, so users will have to use one of two solutions. One is a headband with integrated speakers (much like that on the Meta Quest Pro), the other is to use recent AirPods models, which can enter an “ultra-low latency” mode when connected to the headset. The headset apparently contains the H2 processors (found in the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro).

Apple AR/VR headset: Displays

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s glasses are rumored to handle both virtual and augmented reality via a pair of high-resolution OLED 4K screens made by Sony, including eye-tracking technology. The headset will reportedly feature more than a dozen cameras and sensors, according to The Information, which will project a real-world view onto the screens as if you were looking through clear glass. It will presumably use either OLED or mini LED and incorporate Apple’s Ceramic Shield coating as well.

In January, Display Supply Chain Consultants reported that the headset will have “three display modules” comprised of two Micro OLED displays and one AMOLED panel. The AMOLED display is apparently a low-refresh display that faces outward, to show other people your facial expression and reduce the awkwardness of interacting with people wearing the headset.

Small internal motors are said to automatically adjust the lenses and displays to match the users’ IPD (inter-pupillary distance, which is how far apart your eyes are), giving a full field of view of 120 degrees.

Apple AR/VR headset: Processor and specs

According to Kuo (via MacRumors), Apple’s AR headset will have two processors, with the higher-end processor being a sort of variant on the M2 processor used in Macs and iPads, and the secondary chip responsible for graphics and sensor-related functions for mixed reality. That second chip will be called the “Reality Processor” according to trademark applications. The sounds like a lot of processing power for a headset, but if the headset needs to power a pair of 4K displays, it will need a hefty chip. Reports also say that it will need to be tethered to an iPhone, much like the original Apple Watch.

Kuo also reported that the headset will support Wi-Fi 6E, which is also rumored to come to the iPhone 14. It will also presumably have at least 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. We don’t know anything yet about the battery life, but Kuo says improving battery life will be a focus of the second-generation model. Kuo reports that the headset will come with the same 96W power adapter as the MacBook Pro, which suggests it will have a big battery.

The Information says the device is powered by a main SoC with CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage, along with a secondary custom image signal processor that stitches together all the inputs from all the cameras into a single representation of the outside world, and it communicates with the SoC via a custom ultra-low-latency streaming codec developed by Apple.

The headset is said too employ both short-range and long-range LiDAR to develop a 3D map of your surroundings.

Apple AR/VR headset: Apps and software

As a mixed-reality device, Apple’s headset will also be able to handle both AR and VR applications, which opens the headset up to a variety of apps and services.

A Bloomberg report in April 2023 indicates that Apple has been working with “a small number of developers for months to help them upgrade their existing software for mixed reality” as well as developing AR/VR versions of Apple’s core apps. These apps are said to be updated to make use of the mixed reality capabilities of the headset and look like their iPad counterparts.

Apparently every app that comes pre-installed on an iPhone/iPad is going to get a custom app for the Reality Pro, including:

• Books
• Calendars
• Camera
• Contacts
• FaceTime – create a digital avatar and meet other users in a virtual meeting room.
• Fitness – watch a fitness instructor in VR while you work out in a virtual location (might be difficult to work out wearing a headset).
• Files
• Freeform
• GarageBand
• Home
• iMovie
• Keynote
• Mail
• Maps
• Messaging
• Notes
• Pages
• Photos
• Reminders
• Music
• News
• Numbers
• Safari
• Stocks
• TV – allowing users to view video content in a ‘virtual theater’ or other virtual settings like the desert or moon.
• Weather

The headset is expected to come with new versions of core apps like Messages and Maps, and reports claim that Apple recently enlisted the head of engineering for its iWork productivity apps, Notes app, and Apple News to work on the headset.

Gurman suggests that the headset will be able to run multiple apps at the same time in floating windows. Apps can be automatically opened as you enter a specific location as well.

Gaming is meant to be a major category for the Reality Pro. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also said in December 2021 that gaming could have “a strong focus” on the platform as well as “media consumption.”

Apple will also surely have apps dedicated to AR, such as the Measure app and things like the tool that lets you see a 3D render of Apple products before you buy it. In a December report, Gurman said the iPhone’s Animojis and VR FaceTime could be positioned as “the new-age Zoom.”

Apple is expected to feature advanced FaceTime-based video conferencing and virtual meeting rooms that will realistically render a user’s face and body in virtual reality. Two users, each with a Reality Pro headset, could have a virtual meeting and feel like they’re in the same room, it is said. This requires a lot of processing power and will therefore only be available in one-on-one chats; additional users would be displayed as icons or Memoji.

The New York Times reported in June that Apple “has enlisted Hollywood directors such as Jon Favreau” to develop content for its upcoming headset. The report said Favreau is “working to bring (Prehistoric Planet’s) dinosaurs to life on the headset.”

We’re told that we can expect a software development kit and App Store for third-party applications as well.

Computer Accessories

Apple’s AirPods wireless headphones offer an iconic look, exceptional convenience, and strong audio quality. They come with a premium price tag, however, so it’s important to shop around for a good deal… or find a bunch of tech experts who’ll do this for you. That’s where we come in.

In this article, we round up the best AirPods discounts and bundle deals to help you save money. We’ve got the best prices on the 3rd-gen AirPods that were released in October 2021, the new 2nd-gen AirPods Pro that launched in September 2022, and the premium AirPods Max over-ear headphones from 2020. We’ve also got bargain deals on some older models, such as the early-2019 second-gen AirPods, where stock is still available.

Here are quick links to the best deals; you’ll find more detailed advice and price comparisons for each model further down.

U.S.

• Amazon, AirPods (2nd gen): $99 ($30 off)
• Amazon, AirPods Pro (2nd gen): $234.95 ($14.05 off)
• Amazon, AirPods Max: $479.99 ($69.01 off)

U.K.

• Amazon, AirPods (3rd gen, Lightning): £169 (£10 off)
• Amazon, AirPods (3rd gen, Lightning): £179 (£10 off)
• Amazon, AirPods (2nd gen, wired case): £129 (£10 off)
• Amazon, AirPods Pro (2nd gen): £239 (£10 off)
• Costco, AirPods Max: £489.99 (£59.01 off)

Best AirPods deals

Apple sells two sets of basic AirPods: the latest 3rd-gen model introduced in 2021 (MSRP $179 in the U.S., and RRP £189 in the U.K.), and the 2nd-gen model from 2019 ($129/£139). Best Buy is worth a look for some worthwhile savings in the U.S., while U.K. customers can save a little money across the range.

AirPods (3rd gen, 2021) deals

Apple finally updated the ultra-popular AirPods in October 2021, after a wait of more than two and a half years. The new models feature a more Pro-like design and a MagSafe-compatible charging case; they also have improved battery life and water resistance, and support for Spatial Audio. Get all the info you need in our AirPods 3 review.

You can buy direct from Apple, but you’ll find the best prices elsewhere in the automated table below. For specific advice, read our guide on where to buy the AirPods 3. There are two 3rd gen AirPods available–if you want the MagSafe charging option it costs slightly more.

AirPods (3rd gen, 2021, Lightning; MSRP $169/£179)

AirPods (3rd gen, 2021, Magsafe; MSRP $179/£189)

AirPods (2nd gen, 2019) deals

Note that this version of the AirPods comes with an Lightning charging case that needs to be plugged in, as opposed to the wireless MagSafe charging case. (You can buy a wireless charging case separately, however.)

Check the automated table below for any deals that have popped up since we last updated this article.

AirPods (2nd gen, 2019; MSRP $129/£139)

Best AirPods Pro deals

The AirPods Pro came out in 2019, but a new version was released in September 2022. There are some great deals to be had on the older models. The comparison tables below gather the lowest prices on the AirPods Pro 1st and 2nd gen, so you can be sure not to miss out on any appealing deals.

AirPods Pro (2nd gen, 2022) deals

Apple launched the second-generation AirPods Pro alongside the iPhone 14 in September 2022.

AirPods Pro (2nd gen, 2022; MSRP $249/£249)

AirPods Pro (1st gen, 2019) deals

You may still find the original AirPods Pro on sale at a discount–make sure you factor in if they are refurbished before you decide it’s a good discount. But stock is starting to run short. If you don’t see a price-comparison table below, that means there are no deals at all in your region.

AirPods Pro (1st gen, 2019; was $249/£239)

Best AirPods Max deals

Right now, the AirPods Max are available to buy directly from Apple for $549/£549.

Find the latest prices in our automated table embedded below. For some time now, we’ve been seeing third-party retailers undercut Apple by a significant margin.

AirPods Max (MSRP $549/£549)

For an in-depth look at your options here, read Where to buy AirPods Max.

How to get a good deal on AirPods

Good AirPods deals are rare and tend not to last long. If you see one (and you’re sure the supplier is legit: look it up on TrustPilot if you’ve not bought from there before), grab it.

• The recommend price of the AirPods Max is $549 / £549.
• For the AirPods Pro it’s $249 / £239.
• For the 2021 AirPods with Lightning it’s $169 / £179. With MagSafe it’s $179 / £189.
• For the early-2019 AirPods it’s $129 / £119.

You should never pay more than these prices: we’ve seen unscrupulous retailers claim the MSRP/RRP is higher and work out ‘savings’ based on that.

The 2016 AirPods were removed from sale as soon as the early-2019 models came out, so never officially got a price cut from their launch price of $159/£159. But if you do plump for these much older models, you shouldn’t be paying even $100. If you can’t find a seriously good deal, go for newer ones instead.

Remember to take delivery and postage fees into account when evaluating deals; we include it in our list of prices but most retailers won’t add it until you’re at the checkout. And watch out for deals that seem too good to be true, but turn out to have no stock. We see this a lot.

Bundle deals

The best way to get a good price on AirPods may be to bundle them with a phone, although this is mainly an option in the U.K.

Three offers a variety of bundles that includes the AirPods. Visit the company’s accessories page to browse the best options for you.

EE lets you add AirPods to your plan for £16 a month spread over 11 months plus a £10 upfront fee. That’s the Lightning version, by the way. The AirPods Pro, including a MagSafe case, are £22 a month with a £5 upfront fee. In each case you’ll need to click Apple, then your choice of AirPods model.

Vodafone and O2 aren’t currently bundling the AirPods with their iPhone plans, although O2 sells the 2021 AirPods, the early-2019 AirPods and the 2022 AirPods Pro on their own.

Whichever bundle you go for, remember to check if you’re getting the AirPods Pro, the early-2019 AirPods (sometimes called the second gen or AirPods 2) or the new 2021 AirPods (third gen or AirPods 3). If you’re getting the AirPods Pro, find out if they include the new MagSafe charging case.

AirPods buying advice

Wondering if a pair of AirPods is right for you? Let’s discuss the pros and cons.

There have been five models of in-ear AirPods several of which are still on sale, there’s also the over-ear AirPods Max:

• The original 1st-gen AirPods (2016), discontinued
• The 2nd-gen AirPods (2019), $129/£139
• The 1st-gen AirPods Pro (2019), discontinued
• The 3rd-gen AirPods (2021), Lightning: $169/£179, MagSafe: $179/£189
• The 2nd-gen AirPods Pro (2022), $249/£249
• AirPods Max (2020), $549/£549

All four non-Max models are wireless, sitting in your ears and in theory staying there through snugness of fit alone. The advantages of this are clear–they allow you to go running or work out without worrying about snagging the cables–but they may fall out once you pick up the pace. Our experience, however, is that the AirPods are among the best earbuds around in this regard.

The AirPods Pro offer a snugger fit than the others because they have a choice of flexible ear tips, and are actually able to tell you whether you’ve selected the right tip or not.

Sound quality is decent but not exceptional on the original and early-2019 models; the 2021 AirPods are better, while the AirPods Pro are a step above thanks in part to their better fit and implementation of active noise cancellation. What AirPods consistently do better than non-Apple headphones is coordinate with other Apple products, thanks to the W1 chip (in the 2016 model) and H1 chip (2019 and 2021) which makes pairing with an iPhone a breeze.

Battery-wise, most non-Max AirPods will last around five hours, but that’s not the end of the story: they come with a little charging case with its own larger battery, so you can pop them back in for a quick charge. The case should offer another 24 hours (give or take) before it’ll require charging. The 2021 AirPods, however, offer more in this department, with claimed figures of six hours out of the case and 30 hours in total. We’ve got some advice on getting better AirPods battery life.

Apple’s 2019 AirPods can respond to Hey Siri commands, charge wirelessly if you opt for the Wireless Charging Case, and offer more talk time than the originals. Those features are kept in the 2021 models, with Spatial Audio and Adaptive EQ added to the mix.

The AirPods Max are over-ear headphones and essentially a completely different product to the rest of the AirPods range. They are a lot more expensive and a totally different proposition to the other AirPods. Audio quality is almost universally considered to be exceptional, but it’s debatable whether it’s exceptional enough to justify that premium price tag. And many reviewers have pointed out that the case is oddly designed, given that the one part of the headphones that it doesn’t protect–the mesh headband–is the one that’s most vulnerable to damage.

The AirPods Max are an appealing prospect, but may not be practical for most budgets.

For more detailed advice and thoughts on the best alternatives to Apple’s three cheaper AirPods models, read our guides to the Best wireless earbuds and the best wired headphones.

Apple, Home Audio