Apple’s Vision Pro headset has ignited heated discussions and anticipation within the augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (XR) communities, hopeful revolution of spatial computing. After having a glimpse of our own on what the headset can do, we reached out to Augment IT, a Swiss software company specializing in enterprise mixed and AR solutions, engaging its AR specialists to provide insights into this groundbreaking device.

First impressions

Reflecting on the initial encounters with Apple’s Vision Pro, experts from Augment IT expressed a mix of excitement and critical observations. According to Reto Grob, CEO of Augment IT, the Apple Vision Pro represents a significant leap forward in innovation, particularly with its early-stage advancements such as EyeSight technology, persona integrations, and adoption of fluent design concepts. 

“It’s a great device but it’s only the start – it is vision OS 1.0 (first version) and not iOS 17.3  – it should be compared with that in perspective and limitations or missing features can certainly be improved,” Grob told IT Logs.

User experience and software

Zdravko Nikolovski, CTO at Augment IT, emphasized the seamless user experience offered by Vision Pro, highlighting the device’s premium build quality and intuitive gestures.

“As an everyday iOS user and user that has previous experience with AR / VR platforms, the experience was quite smooth to be honest. The eye calibration was very straightforward and most of the gestures were natural enough, others were very easy to learn. For some users it might be strange to get used to the eye tracked focus and air tap. This is mostly because the apps still look mostly as apps designed for screens. This means that users get the urge to reach forward with their hands and to interact. While this is possible, there is the potential of fatigue. The air tap gesture combined with the eye tracking solves this problem quite well,” Nikolovski says.

Despite minor software bugs, he expects that Apple’s consistent updates will enhance functionality and address performance concerns. At the same time, he points out that for now there is a crucial weakness when it comes to the video pass-through feature. 

“Video pass through let me down a bit, to be honest. It is a lot better than competitors as I said, but I expected two things: higher resolution and higher frame rate. If you move your head fast enough, there is quite a lot of blur, which can be distracting and can lead to motion sickness. I do understand that Apple Vision Pro was designed for stationary use, but still, had a bit of higher expectations here,” he tells IT Logs.

User interface and visual appeal

Ferid Memed, a principal software engineer with extensive experience in AR and VR technologies, provides a nuanced perspective on the Apple Vision Pro. His initial impression of the device leans towards neutrality, acknowledging its improvements in areas like display quality and hand gesture recognition over other devices. 

“I loved the hand gesture recognition. It worked flawlessly even when the hands weren’t raised a lot. The crispness of the UI is also a very neat feature, there is no aliasing or visual artifacts. This also applies to the 3D experiences available on the device,” Memed says.

However, he also notes that the device is not perfect by any means. “No matter the quality of the display, you can still tell that you are seeing reality through a lens, which may or may not be a good thing, depending on what you focus on,” he tells IT Logs.

Comparison with competitors

A comparative analysis with leading AR devices such as Meta Quest 3, HoloLens 2, and Magic Leap 2 provided a broader context for evaluating Vision Pro’s strengths and areas of enhancement.

“The video didn’t have any distortions and provides higher resolution from the passthrough offered by Meta Quest 3. Using video passthrough also solves some of the problems that other headsets have (like HoloLens and Magic Leap) where you are facing a limited Field-of-View. While the second generations of these devices are a lot better than the previous ones, still the FOV is limited. With Apple Vision Pro, this is quite better,” he tells IT Logs.

The ecosystem advantage

Vision Pro’s seamless integration into Apple’s ecosystem emerged as a standout feature, as noted by Ivana Spasova Nakovska, marketing manager at Augment IT. 

“As a devoted Apple user, the first session with Vision Pro felt seamless. It was like using my familiar Mac, iPhone, or iPad but with an entirely new and captivating dimension. Everything that I did, like screencast of my experience, I was able to effortlessly share it across my devices via AirDrop within seconds,” Nakovska points out.

According to her, the device also marks the inception of a new era in spatial computing. 

“As a company, we are fully prepared to contribute to this transformative future that has the potential to positively impact countless lives,” remarked Nakovska,” highlighting the device’s potential to catalyze transformative workflows across industries. 

Leap forward in AR 

The verdict says that Apple’s Vision Pro represents a leap forward in AR technology, combining robust hardware performance, intuitive user interactions, and ecosystem integration. 

“It shows the future and It is very good to have Apple join the game to go for the long-term in XR, which may be a key moment if we look back in a few years,”  Augment IT’s CEO Grob added.

Subscribe

Login

Notify of

new follow-up comments new replies to my comments

Label

{} [+]

Name*

Email*

Website

Label

{} [+]

Name*

Email*

Website

0 Comments

Inline Feedbacks

View all comments