Bloomberg: Apple’s Board Has Tried on the Company’s Mixed-Reality Headset
20 MAY 2022 - I’m not a huge fan of product rumor stories, but I will way make an exception for this one… A report from Bloomberg (via AdAge) says Apple demonstrated its mixed-reality headset to the board of directors last week. That’s a sign “that development of the device has reached an advanced stage, according to people with knowledge of the matter,” according to Bloomberg.
The piece says the first device will be an AR/VR combo, though a set of stand-alone AR glasses is also in the works. Bloomberg also says that work on rOS - the operating system that’ll run the thing or things - has kicked into high gear in recent weeks. And, the piece says, the device could still see introduction later this year or early next year. As for show-and-tell for the board, the report says they have, in the past, “been the first group outside of Apple’s regular employees to see future products.”
So - If I don’t like product rumor stories, why am I doing this one? I’m glad I asked. There are a few reasons:
Though the piece cites secret sources only, it was written by Mark Gurman. His sources tend to be pretty sound.
I am a believer in the potential of both virtual reality and augmented reality, so any chance to talk about it is cool with me.
I thought it might be fun to have a top story of the day that was not about COVID, supply chain issues, governments trying to stifle Apple, Apple trying to stifle employees, or war.
This is (or at least may be) a story about the future of Apple. The way Gurman puts it:
The headset, which combines elements of virtual and augmented reality, is Apple’s next big bet. It represents the company’s first major new product category since the Apple Watch in 2015 and would vault the tech giant into a still-nascent industry…
And I am here for that all day long.
The story has details about the hardware, which I’m not going to hit here. Who knows how closely the thing members of the board put on their heads will resemble whatever we eventually get to try. Check out the story if you want to grok the gear, as it’s rumored to stand currently.
