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Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews

Quest Update Reveals More Vision Pro Features Are Coming, Including FaceTime-Style Selfie Cam

March 24, 2025 From roadtovr

Meta’s upcoming Horizon OS release is bringing a few more of Vision Pro’s most useful features to Quest, including a video chatting selfie cam for avatars and possibly the ability to share windows with other users when in its Horizon Home social space.

Discovered by serial dataminer ‘Luna’, a beta version of Horizon OS v76 is packing in a few new features, including the very Facetime-inspired avatar selfie cam which can be used in video chatting apps.

Quest’s v76 update is currently available on the Public Test Channel (PTC), although Luna went a bit further to implement the avatar selfie cam in a sideloaded version of Discord.

Meta Quest/Horizon OS v76 PTC – Avatar Selfie Cam running in sideloaded Discord. The call backgrounds aren’t enabled yet though.

Thanks @Phene420 for reminding me to test in other apps lol. https://t.co/6WkehJra8B pic.twitter.com/EzTeYPAop1

— Luna (@Lunayian) March 23, 2025

Backgrounds currently aren’t available, Luna notes, however they’re said to include multiple default options, such as Abstract, Beach, Greenhouse, Home Office, Light, Loft, and Office.

Luna also uncovered a hidden tutorial for an upcoming ‘Navigator’ system user interface overhaul on Horizon OS. Teased at Meta Connect 2024 in September, the new UI system restyles the current dock-based UI to a more traditional launcher overlay—putting it more in line with the sort of icon-based app selection you see in Vision Pro and mobile devices today.

NEW: I’ve datamined a tutorial for the upcoming “Navigator” system UI overhaul on Meta Horizon OS.

This was discovered in v76 PTC. You can find my previous reporting on this in the quoted post below, but TL;DR this is currently planned for v77+ https://t.co/mTtVv2KtSu pic.twitter.com/xIWTd2GQsP

— Luna (@Lunayian) March 22, 2025

While the tutorial was discovered in v76 PTC, Luna suspects the Navigator feature will arrive in v77 or beyond, possibly as an Experimental feature.

Furthermore, Luna’s datamining revealed that strings in the v76 PTC of Horizon OS “suggest that Meta is working on the ability to share windows with other users in Horizon Home (and possibly Worlds),” which they maintain “will likely work similarly to SharePlay on visionOS.”

The string in question states it “[s]hares a panel so that other users in your world can see it”.

Granted, Quest users have been asking for these features since well before Vision Pro was released, although it was Apple’s $3,500 mixed reality standalone that has ultimately been the key driver in the company’s quest to further mold the console-style Quest into a general computing device.

To boot, since Vision Pro’s launch in early 2024, Meta has released a number of features in effort to bring Quest’s software closer to parity with visionOS, including spatial video playback, pinch-style gesture controls, and better passthrough on Quest 3.

Still missing in action though is Meta’s long-promised photorealistic Codec Avatars though, which the company first teased in 2019.

Codec Avatars | image courtesy Meta

Like Vision Pro’s photorealistic avatars, Meta researchers demonstrated that Codec Avatars could use smartphones to scan and recreate a user’s face—much like Vision Pro does today.

The key limiter though is Quest 3’s lack of eye or facial tracking, which could mean Meta is waiting to release Codec Avatars with its next high-end headset—the totally hypothetically and still unconfirmed Quest Pro 2. And if we were betting, probably some more Vision Pro-inspired features too.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, Meta Quest 3 News & Reviews, News

Metallica Comes to Vision Pro in Immersive Performance This Week

March 12, 2025 From roadtovr

Apple announced it’s releasing an immersive concert experience from Metallica, landing exclusively on Apple Vision Pro this week.

The concert experience, simply dubbed ‘Metallica’, captures a performance in Mexico City which took place during the second-year finale of the band’s M72 World Tour. It’s set to include classic Metallica songs ‘Whiplash’, ‘One’, and ‘Enter Sandman’.

The concert was captured in Apple’s own immersive video format, which features 8K 3D video and spatial audio, putting viewers face to face with band members James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Robert Trujillo, and offering close ups of the Snake Pit, one of the most expensive fan zones.

Image courtesy Apple

To create the immersive concert experience, Apple built a custom stage layout featuring 14 of its Apple Immersive Video cameras using a mix of stabilized cameras, cable-suspended cameras, and remote-controlled camera dolly systems that moved around the stage.

Vision Pro owners will be able to jump in starting March 14th, however Apple says it’s also demoing a full performance of ‘Whiplash’ to in-store customers who reserve a Vision Pro demo.

“Apple Immersive Video transforms the way people experience storytelling, and we’re thrilled to collaborate with Metallica on a concert unlike any before it” said Tor Myhren, Apple’s vice president of Marketing Communications. “With Metallica on Apple Vision Pro, you feel like you’re right there: front row, backstage, and even on stage with one of the biggest bands of all time.”

This follows a steady release of immersive video content on Vision Pro, including new episodes of the Adventure and Boundless series, as well as a host of content such as Wildlife, an immersive experience featuring The Weeknd, and the headset’s first scripted short film, Submerged.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

Apple Reportedly to Reveal “feature-packed” visionOS 3.0 Update at WWDC in June

March 10, 2025 From roadtovr

Apple is planning a “feature-packed release” for visionOS 3.0, reports Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who says that Vision Pro’s operating system—and not new XR hardware—is going to be a focus at this year’s World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC).

Despite its high price and premium appeal, Apple hasn’t slowed down software updates for Vision Pro, which launched in February 2024 for $3,500.

Recently, the Cupertino tech giant has released a host of productivity features, including the long-promised ultra-wide Mac Virtual Display and the full suite of Apple Intelligence features in developer preview.

Now, Gurman reports Apple is gearing up to showcase visionOS 3.0 at WWDC, which typically takes place in June.

“All signs are pointing to the company’s Vision Products Group shifting its resources to other form factors,” Gurman maintains. “But Apple can’t just let the Vision Pro die out. It has invested too much and needs to keep churning out the device’s visionOS updates (the third edition will be a pretty feature-packed release, I’m told).”

There’s no indication yet what visionOS 3.0 could contain, although if it’s anything like visionOS 2.0, which was announced at WWDC 2024 last June, developers will likely be able to go hands-on as soon as it’s announced.

That said, information is still thin. One possible candidate for visionOS 3.0 could address the headset’s lack of motion controllers; Gurman reported last month Apple is currently working with Sony to adopt PSVR 2’s Sense Controllers as Vision Pro’s officially supported motion controller.

As for hardware reveals (or the lack thereof) at WWDC 2025, Gurman echoes previous claims made by Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo late last year, who reported that multiple Vision Pro follow-up are currently planned.

Gurman notes that Apple is planning a headset containing a new M-series chip (possibly M5), as well as cheaper versions of the headset. Contrary to Kuo’s report, which maintains an upgraded M5 version of Vision Pro is coming this year, Gurman claims we won’t see a follow-up headset from Apple in 2025.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

Is Vision Pro Worth Buying in 2025? Our No-nonsense Recommendation

February 4, 2025 From roadtovr

Vision Pro, Apple’s very first headset, just turned one year old. Now that we’re into 2025, is it still worth buying? Read on for our no-nonsense recommendation.

Vision Pro isn’t worth the cost for most people.

Why: Vision Pro is an incredible headset by many measures. The interface, ease of use, and ecosystem integration are second-to-none. And while it has standout features like immersive FaceTime, support for almost all existing iPad apps, automatic 3D photo conversions, and an excellent ultrawide virtual monitor, the reality is that most people aren’t going to get $3,500 worth of value from the headset. There aren’t yet enough uniquely valuable use-cases or ‘killer app’ experiences to justify dropping that much cash on the headset.

To be clear, this assessment isn’t unique to the year 2025. Vision Pro was too expensive for most people on the very day that it launched. At a different price point, our recommendation would be very different. But for now, the cost will outweigh the value for most people.

Who should buy Vision Pro?

Like Apple CEO Tim Cook has said, Vision Pro is a glimpse into the future that you can get today. But looking through that time machine costs a pretty penny. If you’re someone with money to burn and a love for the latest tech, there’s probably no other product on the market today that can deliver the “wow this feels like the future” moments that Vision Pro can.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews

Blackmagic’s New 8K Camera for Apple Immersive Video is Pre-ordering Now for $30,000

December 16, 2024 From roadtovr

Blackmagic Design has revealed full specs and details for its new URSA Cine Immersive camera, specially designed to shoot 8K VR180 footage for the Apple Immersive Video format. Pre-orders for the $30,000 camera are open now, with shipping planned for Q1 2025. A forthcoming update to DaVinci Resolve Studio (also made by Blackmagic) adds editing tools specifically for Apple Immersive Video, including support for calibration data from the camera.

Apple Immersive Video is a 180° 3D video format intended for playback on Apple Vision Pro. Early versions of Blackmagic’s URSA Cine Immersive are likely the cameras used to film Apple Immersive Video content currently available on the headset.

Now the camera is being made available commercially, with pre-orders available for a cool $30,000. Though certainly expensive, this is in-line with many other high-end cinema cameras.

The URSA Cine Immersive is specially made to capture Apple Immersive Video, featuring a pair of 180° stereo lenses, capturing 59MP (8,160 x 7,200) each, with 16 stops of dynamic range. The camera can shoot up to 90 FPS in the Blackmagic RAW format, which also embeds calibration data (unique to each camera) that’s carried into the editing process for more precise and stable footage.

The forthcoming update to the DaVinci Resolve Studio editing software will include features specific to editing footage from the camera:

  • Immersive Video Viewer: Pan, tilt, and roll clips on 2D monitors or directly on Apple Vision Pro
  • Seamless Transitions: Clean master files using metadata-based bypass for Apple Vision Pro transitions
  • Export Presets: Streamlined delivery to Apple Vision Pro-ready packages

Both Blackmagic and Apple hope the release of the camera and streamlined editing workflow will make it easier for filmmakers to capture and release content in the Apple Immersive Video format.

It’s unclear if the camera and editor will work equally well for capturing VR180 footage for playback on other platforms and headsets, or if there’s something proprietary to the Apple Immersive Video format that would prevent straightforward compatibility and multi-platform releases.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, XR Industry News

Apple Vision Pro Gets Ultrawide Mac Virtual Display in visionOS 2.2 Release

December 12, 2024 From roadtovr

Previously only available in beta, Apple has now pushed its panoramic display feature to all Vision Pro users, bringing the choice of three virtual screen sizes when using Mac Virtual Display.

Mac Virtual Display initially launched with a single virtual screen size back in February, which also allowed users to have multiple app windows, although screen real estate was somewhat limited for a device opining to be a general computing machine first, entertainment device second.

Now, in visionOS 2.2, all Vision Pro users have access to two new display formats: ‘Wide’ (21:9) and ‘Ultrawide’ (32:9), the latter of which is said to allow for max resolutions “equivalent to two 4K monitors, side by side,” Apple said at its unveiling in June. Mac-side dynamic foveated rendering also keeps content “sharp wherever you look,” the company added.

In our hands-on test of the feature, we found it to be a huge value-add to the headset.

The feature requires a Mac computer with macOS Sequoia 15.2, which covers a pretty wide range of devices, including everything from 2017-era iMac Pros to the company’s latest M4 chip MacBooks.

Additionally, the visionOS 2.2 update also includes support for iOS’s Personal Hotspot feature, which the company says now lets you share the cellular data connection of your iPhone or iPad with other devices, including Vision Pro, effectively giving you access to 5G download speeds.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

This $45 Headstrap Makes Apple’s $3,500 Headset Much Better

November 25, 2024 From roadtovr

Vision Pro is an incredible headset in many ways, but its most obvious weak point (after the pricetag) is comfort. Apple’s obsession with aesthetics made a headset that’s striking for those looking at it, but less comfortable than it could be for those actually using it. Luckily, fixing this flaw is quite simple.

Many critiques of Vision Pro’s comfort attribute the issue to the headset’s weight. It’s metal after all! So that must be the issue, right?

Well, Vision Pro actually isn’t much heavier than contemporary headsets. Quest 3’s display housing (the headset without the headstrap or facepad) weighs 394g. Vision Pro’s display housing weighs just 81g more at 475g.

Photo by Road to VR

Weight is a key component of headset comfort, but way a headstrap distributes the weight is also a massively important factor.

And to be fair, even Quest 3’s default soft strap isn’t particularly comfortable. Clearly recognizing this, Meta offers an after-market ‘Elite Strap’, which adds 183g, bringing Quest up to 642g (including the facepad). That’s actually heavier than Vision Pro, with its default strap and facepad, at 625g.

Quest 3 with its default soft strap is quite uncomfortable for me | Photo by Road to VR

In the case of Meta’s Elite Strap, adding weight actually makes the headset more comfortable.

Like Quest 3’s default strap, Vision Pro’s default ‘Solo Knit Band’ headstrap also isn’t that comfortable.

Solo Knit Band | Image courtesy Apple

Clearly recognizing this, Apple also opted to include a ‘Dual Loop Band’ headstrap with every Vision Pro. It’s a better (thanks to a top strap for improved weight distribution) but it’s still not great.

Dual Loop Band | Image courtesy Apple

It’s a real shame because on the one hand, the default Knit Band is actually really awesome. It’s soft, cups the back of your head nicely, and is incredibly easy to adjust with a built-in dial on the side. But if you use it, you forgo the benefit of the top strap that comes with the Dual Loop Band. So you can have one or the other, but not both.

It’s obvious that Apple should have just combined the two. Luckily for us, third-party strap options fix this issue for significantly less than an official Elite Strap from Apple—even if they did offer one.

After trying multiple third-party straps for Vision Pro, I’ve finally found one that does exactly I want: it combines with the excellent Knit Band, allows me to use the headset without the facepad (thereby reducing weight), and it gets my eyes closer to the lenses for a wider field-of-view.

Photo by Road to VR

This is the ANNAPRO A2 strap for Vision Pro, and it’s pretty much what Apple should have offered right out of the gate. The $45 pricetag feels very reasonable considering how much better it makes Apple’s $3,500 headset.

I’ve been testing it for a few weeks now and it has made using Vision Pro for long sessions significantly more comfortable. In fact, it’s a huge factor in making the new ultrawide virtual monitor for Vision Pro actually useful. The improved comfort makes Vision Pro much more attractive for day-to-day work.

When the company sent us the headstrap to check out, they also extended a 10% discount code to our readers: be sure to use the code ROADTOVR at checkout on Amazon if you plan to buy one.

The Annapro A2 strap slides easily onto Vision Pro’s struts, and works seamlessly with the Knit Band (it can also work with the Dual Loop if you want even more top-strap support). It includes four different pad sizes (5mm, 12mm, 18mm, and 25mm) in the box, allowing it to fit to different head shapes.

Photo by Road to VR

I found the 5mm pad works best for me, allowing me to wear the headset without the facepad, and bring the lenses as close to my eyes as I comfortably can, resulting in an expanded field-of-view and a more natural AR experience thanks to the open periphery.

Photo by Road to VR

Apple clearly prioritized form-over-function when it came to Vision Pro. They wanted to deliver something that looked no more clunky than a large pair of ski goggles. But that goal led them to compromises on comfort that have become one of the main critiques of the headset.

It’s nice that this can now be fixed thanks to affordable third-party accessories. This particular approach works so well that I wouldn’t be surprised if the next iteration of Vision Pro comes adopts something similar right out of the gate.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, hardware review, News

Apple Releases The Weeknd’s Immersive Music Video Exclusively for Vision Pro

November 15, 2024 From roadtovr

Apple has released a new immersive music video from The Weeknd featuring his latest single ‘Open Hearts’, which is available exclusively on Vision Pro for a limited time.

Captured in Apple’s Immersive Video format, Open Hearts serves up 180-degree immersive views and spatial audio set to eponymous single from the Canadian pop artist’s upcoming album ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’.

Putting viewers in the center of the action, the music video—or more of a immersive music experience—lets viewers journey alongside the Weeknd on what Apple calls “an electrifying sonic voyage,” as he makes his way through a surreal, haunting cityscape.

The five-minute experience is free on Vision Pro through the Apple TV app, although users looking to view the experience for entirely free can technically request to demo Open Heart at their local Apple Store starting today.

Apple says it’s soon bringing out more experiences for free, including the upcoming Concert for One, which is launching globally on Friday, November 22nd, which invites fans to enjoy intimate performances from the world’s biggest artists.

This follows the release of Submerged, Apple’s first scripted short film, and potentially one of the most expensive immersive videos to date. Also filmed in Apple Immersive Video format, Submerged was filmed on a full-scale 23-ton submarine set made with real metal, modeled after WWII-era vessels.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

Final Cut Pro 11 Finally Unlocks Spatial Video Editing, But Lacks Vision Pro Preview

November 15, 2024 From roadtovr

Apple has released Final Cut Pro 11, which finally lets you edit spatial videos captured with Vision Pro, or iPhone 15 Pro or later.

The latest Final Cut Pro now lets users make adjustments to the left- and right-eye angles on their Mac display, add effects, color correction, and titles to spatial videos.

Of course, thanks to Mac Virtual Display, you can also now edit those spatial videos captured with Vision Pro on Vision Pro.

While the added virtual screen real estate is undeniably better for organizing complex workflows, Final Cut Pro 11 tethered with Vision Pro is still essentially a 2D editing experience, just bigger.

Image courtesy Apple

Still lacking is the ability to actually preview spatial videos in-headset while editing—i.e. having a 3D window inside of Final Cut Pro that renders stereoscopically.

Granted, spatial videos can be exported directly to a user’s Photos library after editing, and viewed immediately on Vision Pro, although just not previewed during the editing process, which feels like a miss.

Still, Apple is bringing out its expanded Mac Virtual Display options, which will let users blow up either Mac Virtual Display to a massive 32:9 ultra-wide curved display, which the company likens to two 5K monitors side by side.

For now, the panoramic Mac Virtual Display option is available in beta, which only requires a few simple steps to download, which may come in handy (but not too handy) when editing spatial videos on Final Cut Pro 11.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

Vision Pro Ultrawide Display Turns a Little MacBook into a Productivity Powerhouse

November 8, 2024 From roadtovr

Apple has finally dropped the ultrawide virtual display for Vision Pro in beta, giving the existing virtual display feature the ability to stretch to wide and ultrawide widths for extra screen real-estate. Out of the box it’s impressive, but default MacOS window management makes it kind of a pain to use. But with the right third-party window manager, it’s even better than I hoped for.

I’ll be honest, I didn’t know just how useful the new ultrawide feature would be. I’ve used Vision Pro’s virtual desktop feature many times before. It’s a great way to get some extra screen real-estate out of my MacBook Air (M2). But it was limited in that it could only really act like a single, large 16:9 monitor.

My productivity workhorse is my desktop PC on which I’ve used two side-by-side monitors for years. For a power-user like me, having the extra width to have multiple things on screen at once is great; constantly minimizing and maximizing apps is a pain. I also combine my dual monitors with additional virtual workspaces, meaning I can group applications together on a specific workspace for a specific task.

I’ve yet to make the leap to a single ultrawide monitor over dual monitors. They’re pretty damn expensive and physically take up a lot of space.

But with a little software update, Apple just gave me an ultrawide monitor that I can take with me wherever I take my Vision Pro. The ultrawide setting essentially gives you two 16:9 monitors side-by-side, but without the seam in the middle if you were using dual monitors.

So not only is my little MacBook Air now able to replicate all the screen real estate that I have with the big setup that takes up my whole office desk, it also has the benefit of no seam in the middle of the monitors. I didn’t fully appreciate how much this would increase the flexibility I have with setting up my workspaces. Now it’s easy to span an app seamlessly in the ‘middle’ of the workspace, while less important apps can be on the flanks. It’s great! But…

MacOS window management is simply not ready to handle ultrawide monitors. Even though Apple just added improved window tiling in the latest version of MacOS, it really isn’t very helpful on an ultrawide monitor.

At best you can ask the system to put an app into any quarter of the monitor, but this results in super-wide apps that aren’t useful in that particular shape. You can make a window go to just one half of the screen, but that gives you a maximum of only two apps on the screen at once.

Without window management that’s actually made for ultrawide monitors, you’re stuck doing a lot of resizing of windows to get them into useful arrangements to really take advantage of all the space you have. Or you do the seemingly insane thing Apple always shows in their marketing: just use randomly sized windows that overlap with other windows while also wasting a bunch of screen space. I mean look, this is literally what they showed when promoting this feature:

Image courtesy Apple

Being able to quickly get apps into useful size and position is essential to really benefiting from an ultrawide monitor. The more time it takes to size and position apps, the less often you’re going to actually use the extra space to your benefit.

Luckily there’s many third-party window managers out there for MacOS. And I would argue that having one is essential if you’re using the Vision Pro ultrawide virtual display.

Here is a look at MacOS’s built in quadrant window tiling which is not remotely useful for an ultrawide monitor. Then you see a third-party tool that makes things much better.

For now I’ve landed on a window manager called Rectangle. With it I can easily set up a ‘main’ app in the center 2/4 of the monitor, then stick apps in the remaining 1/4 on the left or 1/4 on the right. Or I can even stack two apps on the sides, taking up 1/8 of the monitor each.

This works great and makes me feel like I have even more room than I did when using two physical 16:9 monitors (again, the lack of gap in the middle is a surprising benefit because you can put your most important app directly in front of you).

Screenshot by Road to VR

Although Rectangle has the features that make this work well, the app itself is overcomplicated; like using a sledgehammer when all you really need is a regular hammer. There still might be a more streamlined solution out there.

There’s really no reason why MacOS itself shouldn’t have similar window-arranging capabilities that actually make sense for ultrawide monitors, especially now that Vision Pro doubles as one.

Anyway… with the window management issue taken care of, I’m finding the ultrawide virtual display feature even more useful than I expected. When combined with MacOS’s built-in Spaces feature—which allows me to slide easily between multiple ultrawide workspaces—my little MacBook Air feels like an absolute productivity powerhouse. It’s wild to me that it can run five ultrawide workspaces worth of apps and still feel nice and smooth.

For me, the ultrawide option (with some third-party help) has changed Vision Pro’s virtual display feature from something that’s nice to have here and there, into an essential capability of the headset.

Now listen, some of you who have made it this far might be thinking to yourself: “to some extent you’re just praising ultrawide monitors in general.”

You’re not wrong. But the thing is, this one fits in my headset, which means I can bring a highly productive workspace with me anywhere that I would take my laptop.

Vision Pro is still too heavy to want to use this setup all day (and it’s still more expensive than an ultrawide monitor itself!). But mark my words: once Apple has an equivalent headset that’s half the size and half the price, people are going to see huge value from this kind of work setup.

Filed Under: Apple Vision Pro News & Reviews, News

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