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Apple projector could display AR and VR content without a headset

Apple projector could display AR and VR content on your desk and walls | Purely conceptual stock photo shown

A patent granted today describes an Apple projector capable of displaying a mix of AR and VR content onto the desk and walls of your home or office without the need for a headset or screen.

The company says that a mix of low-res and hi-res content could be projected, and that the device might be motorized so that it can turn to display content on different surfaces …

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Apple continues work on all-glass MacBook with virtual keyboard and trackpad

Apple continues work on all-glass MacBook with virtual keyboard and trackpad | Patent drawing

Apple famously dispensed with a physical keyboard when it revolutionized the smartphone market, and the company’s long-term goal appears to be to do the same for laptops.

A succession of patents have revealed Apple’s work on an all-screen MacBook with a virtual trackpad and keyboard, and a new continuation patent published yesterday shows that this project is still very much alive …

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Apple patent describes using AirPods to detect heart disease, likely next year

Apple patent describes how it could use AirPods to detect heart disease | Airpods x-ray image with heart-shaped sparkler display

9to5Mac recently discovered evidence in iOS 18 that Apple is testing using future AirPods models to measure heartbeat, with our sources indicating that the feature will be implemented in both AirPods Pro 3 and the next generation of Powerbeats Pro.

An Apple patent application describes how the company can use a health sensor not just to measure heart-rate, but also to detect heart disease …

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Apple shows how you could try out a new iPhone inside Vision Pro

Apple shows how you could try out a new iPhone inside Vision Pro (patent illustrations of camera demo)

If you want to try out a new iPhone, you might not have to leave your home in future. Apple has applied for a patent which illustrates a virtual try-out of a new phone from within a Vision Pro environment. The company describes its use for iPads and Macs too.

For example, you could hold up a virtual iPhone in front of a virtual landscape, and see the images you’d capture with the different cameras …

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Apple patents way to replace car mirrors with cameras, with windshield projection

Apple patents way to replace car mirrors with cameras | Lower-tech Honda E system shown

The Apple Car project may be dead, but there’s still a chance we’ll see some Apple tech in cars made by other companies – and a patent application for a way to replace car mirrors with cameras could be an interesting candidate.

Such systems already exist, with camera views shown on dashboard displays, but what Apple wants to do is instead project them onto your windshield …

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Apple patent explains how Vision Pro comfort could be improved

How Vision Pro comfort could be improved | Existing model shown

Vision Pro comfort is one of the biggest limiting factors for the device right now. Many owners say that the weight makes itself known in even moderate use, and my own experience was that I felt both the weight and heat in session lasting around an hour.

But the company may have a solution for either this or future Apple Vision products, as outlined in a newly-granted patent …

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Your future AirPods case may look a lot like a modern iPod nano

Apple patents new AirPods case with interactive display

Sometimes with Apple, what’s old becomes new again. Designs and product names are at times revisited as the inspiration for new products. AirPods and HomePods, for example, play off the strong brand awareness for the iPod.

According to a filed patent, Apple may take things a step further with the iPod inspiration, creating an AirPods case that looks and works a lot like a modern iPod nano.

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Apple Pencil for Vision Pro seemingly supported by patent application

Apple Pencil for Vision Pro (existing model shown, boxed)

A recent report suggested we might be seeing some form of Apple Pencil for Vision Pro, and that idea appears to be supported by an Apple patent application published this week.

The lack of a physical surface to press against means that things like drawing and handwriting can be tougher in a virtual environment, and Apple describes a couple of interesting solutions to this …

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Apple patent may (slightly) hint at touchscreen iMac similar to Microsoft Surface Studio

Touchscreen iMac hint along the lines of Microsoft Surface Studio (shown)

Although Apple has long rejected the concept of a touchscreen iMac or MacBook, and for good reason, there was one product which made us wonder whether there might be a role for such a device: the Microsoft Surface Studio (above).

Take away the Microsoft logo and Windows UI, and you could easily imagine it was designed by Apple. It’s today being suggested that a new patent application might hint at the possibility of making a Mac version …

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Apple Ring patent granted, as reports circulate – but this one is likely dead

Apple Ring patent granted | Purely illustrative photo of rings

An Apple Ring patent application has been granted, amid conflicting reports about the status of the company’s development of such a device.

However, while recent reports focus more on the applications of a ring as a health sensor as a cheaper alternative to an Apple Watch, this patent is more concerned with using it as an input device …

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You might not need prescription lens inserts for future Apple Vision products

You might not need prescription lens inserts | Illustrative image of inside of VR headset

Vision Pro isn’t large enough to accommodate eyeglasses, so wearers will need prescription lens inserts instead. But that might not always be the case: A new Apple patent describes a way to electrically adjust the displays to suit your vision.

The system Apple describes is done dynamically, so it can effectively match a different prescription for each eye, and also allow switching the same device between multiple users with different prescriptions …

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