[parasubvert]

Their priority is not selling a mass market low margin product. That is Meta‘s strategy, and they’ve lost nearly $100b because they think it’s the future of all computing. The thing is, Apple agrees. But they’re not the kind of company to burn that kind of capital.

Vision Pro was all about selling an enthusiast device that pushes the boundaries of XR technology into what they thought was appropriate baseline that would shift the market. They succeeded at that, the entire market is changing their strategy to respond to visionOS. visionOS has set the baseline for spatial computing so much that even horizon OS is copying it now. Apple takes the product line very seriously, they they’re just playing a different game than you want them to play.

[xp84]

> Want them to

I mean, I don't care what they do (other than as a shareholder, lol. But it's not a major part of my portfolio.)

I just do not think they have made an impact on the mass-market -- and at their market cap, anything short of mass-market should be considered a failure and a distraction from products that actually sell.

"Horizon OS copying them" is flattering I guess, but they're not copying all the stupid things about AVP: The heavy, expensive metal construction, the silly outer display, the stupid tethered proprietary battery, the $3500 price tag. I do have a Quest 3 though, which is vaguely fun, but was an impulse buy I only occasionally use.

I've never even tried the AVP, and while that seems like a disqualification of me as a judge of it, that's just the point: I'm a geek. If even I dismiss it as a useless and overpriced toy, it will never be mass market, because normal people need more of a justification than I do to adopt a gadget. It needs to do something amazing that people immediately see the value of. Which is why I cited courtside NBA games (not a 10-minute short btw) as an example.

If Apple's 'game' is to make a niche device with no important apps and about 5,000 MAUs then they're playing it great.

[parasubvert]

Book a demo at the Apple Store. It’s the kind of product that seems like an overpriced expensive toy until you actually experience it.

People who follow the XR industry know that most aspects of the AVP were very carefully considered engineering and design trade-offs, including the aluminum construction, which is arguably lighter than plastic for the nature of the headset design requiring a certain level of durability and recyclability. Tethered battery is also a very smart design decision, that I think we will see followed by other manufacturers. The outwardfacing display is necessary if the headset is to be integrated in the workplace or in a social environment, such as cafés or airplanes. In my experience, my family and coworkers appreciate it.

[xp84]

The battery being connected with a proprietary plug is a very smart decision? They couldn’t have used USB-C? Is this like Lightning? Because they admitted after 8 years of fighting it that usb-c made a lot more sense there too.

For me that part is just proof that they are determined, even after you spend $3.5k, to nickel and dime you: the only way to get increased battery life is either to buy additional hundred plus dollar (so, marked up 10x from their cost) batteries from Apple, or to daisy-chain the heavy battery to your own heavy battery (or to the darn wall.)

[parasubvert]

They did use USB-C, on the battery itself. You literally can use the headset, and most do, with it plugged in. The exception is when you’re doing room scale, immersive VR, or when you’re walking around the house or office,but that’s generally within the time life of the battery. The connecter on the headset itself is flat with a lock, so that the cord runs towards the back of your head and doesn’t disconnect by mistake. Similar to MagSafe, it is well designed. Last I checked, daisychaining batteries is exactly how the Meta Quest does it with the elite strap, and also how all iPhones and iPads work, so I’m not sure what the problem is.