Augmented Reality (AR)

In his latest edition of the Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman talks about Apple’s long-rumored mixed-reality device, which could finally launch as early as next year. This is not the first time Gurman has reported on this mixed reality device. Apple has been planning one for a few years now and it seems it’s almost ready to be announced.

Plans for an Apple VR headset continue, with the company reportedly now testing a display panel with a massive pixel density of 3,000 dots per inch (dpi).

Conventional OLED panels max out at 600 dots per inch, and Apple has so far used the term Retina to describe displays as low as 227 dpi …

While Apple’s AR Glasses are still at least one year away from being unveiled, the company is still looking for other Augmented Reality applications. Cupertino Company is teaming up with T-Mobile for an AR Innovation program with hubraum, a Deutsch tech incubator from the US carrier.

A sketchy report today says that the rumored Apple headset with combined AR-VR capabilities has fallen behind schedule. The report says supply-chain partners expected the device to move into a second phase of prototype testing last quarter, but this didn’t happen.

However, it’s unclear that much weight should be given to the claim …

Apple officially announced its next event “Spring Loaded” for April 20 today. Along with the colorful invitation artwork, another AR Easter egg has been included on Apple’s Events webpage.

Snap is preparing a new Spectacles model, its fashion glasses to record Snaps, but with a different approach. The new Spectacles will feature displays capable of AR effects, according to a new report by the Information.

Creators are discovering new ways to tell immersive stories through augmented reality (AR). Driving the adoption of AR is a new generation of apps, tools, and technologies that democratize art creation and make virtual worlds instantly accessible to anyone. The evolution of AR from a novelty to an essential communication tool will unlock new experiences for artists, teachers, shoppers, travelers, students, and more.

As rumors of Apple’s plans to create AR and VR products intensify, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg joins The Information 411 podcast this week to talk about Facebook’s own interest in AR and VR. Zuckerberg made it through the interview without mentioning Apple by name — but the icy relationship between the two companies was clear in multiple comments from the Facebook CEO.

Earlier today, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo published a new investor note outlining Apple’s plans for AR and VR products over the next several. The note also included one tidbit about Apple’s long-term plans: augmented reality contact lenses potentially coming within the next decade.

As the Microsoft Ignite event kicked off today, the company took time to focus on its AR/VR efforts with the announcement of the Microsoft Mesh platform. The new mixed-reality software will work with the company’s hardware like the HoloLens 2 and more to offer collaborative virtual experiences and eventually “holoportation.” All of this comes as Apple could launch its first AR headset as soon as this year.

We got some idea about how Apple’s VR/AR headset might look from a simple rendering based on a prototype seen by The Information. A designer has now used this as the basis of more realistic renders of the design.

The original cartoon-style drawing showed only a side view, but designer Antonio De Rosa has given us some ideas on how the rumored $3,000 headset might look from a variety of angles …

A recent report suggested that an Apple mixed-reality headset would be the Mac Pro of VR devices, priced at a level where the company would only expect to sell one unit per day per Apple Store.

A new report today claims to have more specific details, including ultra-high-resolution 8K displays, and a price point somewhere around $3,000 …

Almost all the reports to date on the headset project commonly dubbed Apple Glasses have pointed to an augmented reality (AR) device, rather than a virtual reality (VR) one. But a new Bloomberg report suggests that Apple’s first headset will primarily be a VR device, with limited AR capabilities. It goes on to suggest that it will be the Mac Pro of VR devices.

A VR focus would be surprising, as Apple CEO Tim Cook has repeatedly said that AR is of far greater interest to the company …

Yesterday saw a new Kuo report which said that Apple plans to release its first AR device at some point this year. While it didn’t go into any detail, the analyst has previously suggested we can expect to see iPhone-powered Apple Glasses, at least for the first-generation of the company’s move into augmented reality.

Although there are pros and cons to having the iPhone do the heavy lifting, overall I think it’s an approach that makes sense …

Apple has continued its focus on augmented reality this year, adding LiDAR scanners to the iPhone 12 Pro and iPad Pro lineups. In a new interview with CNET, Mike Rockwell, Apple’s head of AR, and Allessandra McGinnis, senior product manager for AR, reiterated Apple’s bullish opinion on AR.

As it’s become a little tradition this fall, Apple has included another little Easter egg on its events page for the “One more thing” special November event. And this time around the subtle AR surprise hints that the first Apple Silicon Mac will be a new MacBook.

Adobe today announced the inaugural release of Aero Desktop, the long-awaited AR creation companion to Aero on iOS and iPadOS. Aero is available today in public beta as part of Adobe MAX 2020, where Adobe announced significant updates to its entire ecosystem of apps like Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Illustrator, and Fresco.

We’re not expecting to see Apple Glasses before 2022 at the earliest, but we’ve now seen a prototype of one rival effort: Facebook AR glasses.

Interestingly, this prototype has no display and is entirely focused on an auditory experience. It’s part super-sophisticated hearing aid, part virtual reality device …

As we close in on Apple TV+’s first year, the service is gradually growing its library of premium-brand original shows and movies, with Apple ordering dozens of series this year to start production as coronavirus restrictions ease.

Bloomberg reports that Apple is also planning to take TV+ into another dimension, with the addition of augmented reality content.