Comment by aprentic

Apple is an interesting company.

They didn't invent computers, mobile phones, mp3 players or tablets. Instead they tend to take products where the whole industry is essentially still in alpha, polish it to a mirror finish and then show the world how those products will make their personal lives better.

Computers don't just have to be for big companies running accounting software; they can unlock the creative potential of writers and artists. Mobile phone aren't just for drug dealers and business executives; they let people share their lives with their friends.

There were a few misses too. The Magic Mouse looked sleek but was mostly annoying and didn't really do anything that other mice didn't already do better.

I'm afraid this headset falls in the same category. This seems to have marginal improvements over the HTC Vive I bought 6 years ago. The resolution is better, it looks lighter and less bulky. It also gives you pass through mode for an AR experience vs just a VR experience. It looks like a good headset.

That's just not enough. Not only does it fail to meet the high innovation standards that we've come to expect from Apple, it fails to meet the standards that we already expect from AR.

Unlike with all the previous hardware innovations, we already know what we want from AR. Everyone who has played modern video games is already used to various forms of HUDs and we've seen many iterations of what works well and what doesn't.

When I put on an AR headset I want all the things I've seen in video games. I want name indicators. I want automatic highlighting of relevant objects. I want to replace my map with floating directional indicators. I want to see my health stats floating off to the side. I want to be able to make all my friends wear silly hats. I want a virtual cat following me around.