Apple Has Secret Team Working on Virtual Reality Headset

[thekeyring]

You say that sarcastically, but if you honestly believe that fits Timmy's Apple, you've got to cut back on the kool-aid.

I believe it fits Tim Cook's Apple as much as it fitted Steve Jobs' Apple.

An analyst suggested Apple should buy GoPro, Adobe and Tesla to boost revenues. Tim Cook appears to not agree. He doesn't buy companies just so he can add their profits to Apple's balance sheet. Apple has grown by continuing to release products which sell in huge numbers with large profit margins.

There's so much negativity on these forums about Tim Cook as a leader. The iPad failing? Tim Cook's Apple don't know how to develop it and carry on the success. The iPhone succeeding? That's just a gift from the Steve Jobs' era.
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My opinion: Apple has no vision now. That does not mean super-human powers. It means someone identifying a cool need and running with it. What does someone "need" now that can be helped with technology. Steve Jobs was not super-human. He just saw things in basic ways for needs that he thought would be cool based on technology coming out or possibilities. Basic.

Anywho, I feel this is probably a part of the reason for their stock sucking. Why? I was always mesmerized by Apple/Jobs. Fam and I go to the Apple Store weekly. Seriously. Have only been there once a year now, at most, and that's to fix a phone. No cool and exciting desire. Apple reached its peak and then what? The excitement is gone.

I think you feel this way because Steve Jobs isn't on stage presenting them to you.

As for lack of vision: Lots of companies just seem to release products. Tim Cook's Apple released products and then, at the end of 2014 stood back and showed them all on screen from the tiny Apple Watch to the huge 5K iMac. They all seemed to fit together.

Apple's vision for personal technology:
http://bit.ly/20jL55s

 

[DevNull0]

That said, apart from games (or simulation training), no one has found a useful application for VR yet. Augmented reality - sure, but full VR seems like solving a problem that no one has.

You mean you personally haven't found a useful non-gaming application because you haven't read any of the tens of thousands of articles about uses for the tech from travel to shopping to real estate to therapy to communication to media viewing.

Here's a hint. Zuckerberg bet $2,000,000,000 on VR and not because he thinks it's a good gaming toy. Zuckerberg is much smarter than you are.

 

[Bubba Satori]

Science, education and medicine are going to be huge applications for VR.

 

[MrAverigeUser]

Science, education and medicine are going to be huge applications for VR.

May I correct this sentence?

Science, industrial R&D (and now also medicine) are already markets for VR, education will soon going to be a huge market for VR...

 

[69650]

VR feels a bit like 3D TV. It sounds great in theory but nobody has yet managed a build compelling product I would buy and actually use. I tried the Samsung version last year and was surprised how bad it was. The picture was blurry and uncomfortable to view after a short period. If Apple can make it work then great but I have my doubts that it won't simply end up in the same scrap bin as the much vaunted Apple Televison.

 

[wikiverse]

You mean you personally haven't found a useful non-gaming application because you haven't read any of the tens of thousands of articles about uses for the tech from travel to shopping to real estate to therapy to communication to media viewing.

Here's a hint. Zuckerberg bet $2,000,000,000 on VR and not because he thinks it's a good gaming toy. Zuckerberg is much smarter than you are.

Ok sure. But it's a gimmick like 3DTV. Remember all the amazing revolutions that was going to create? Didn't happen. VR is the new 3DTV.

 

[DevNull0]

Ok sure. But it's a gimmick like 3DTV. Remember all the amazing revolutions that was going to create? Didn't happen. VR is the new 3DTV.

If you'd tried good VR (Vive, Rift) you wouldn't say that. The impact of VR will make smartphones look like a minor blip.

It is funny though you can totally write off something you've never even seen in person.

 

[wikiverse]

If you'd tried good VR (Vive, Rift) you wouldn't say that. The impact of VR will make smartphones look like a minor blip.

It is funny though you can totally write off something you've never even seen in person.

The fundamental problem with VR is that it is fully immersive. Which means you need a specialized venue to use it (an empty room), or you need to be sitting. You also have a fixed environment that requires you to move in order to look around the space. We know, even from gaming, that Kinect products and the Wii have turned out to be far less successful than traditional gaming.

Beyond highly niche training products (say, for surgeons) or gimmicky games/media that rely solely on the initial 'wow' factor of VR, no one has yet proposed an economically viable, mass-market use case for any fully-immersive VR product, regardless of how advanced it is.

The Microsoft Hololens, seems to be the closest to a useful application, but that is augmented reality, not Virtual reality, and it is still way too bulky to actually be a viable commercially successful product. Google glass was the mini-version of it, and it was a total flop.

 

[ajforbes20]

I wonder how many "Secret Teams" apple has had over the years that produced nothing... this will be another!

 

[iPadCary]

... and for a really lively discussion, I highly suggest you visit the Reddit sub iVR.

 

[mrice99]

802 - Head

800 - Ski Goggles

 

[pithy]

Now...you've got me thinking!!!

fo sho

 

[andreiru]

This should come soon. Looking forward.

 

[Nicky G]

I do not see "gaming" as a major contributor to VR, not for another five years. Developers have gotten themselves overhyped the way some film makers got over hyped on 3D movies. The consumer base isn't there, you can see it on things like Steam Hardware surveys (only 40% of users with multi-monitor setups use dual or better 1920x1080 displays).

Major pushes in VR will come from design, drafting, and manufacturing that would benefit from stereoscopic 3D modeling. This is where VR will live for at least 5 years, before wider adoption of sufficiently powerful hardware allows to support game development without breaking studios.

LOL this is pretty ignorant.

 

[DevNull0]

The fundamental problem with VR is that it is fully immersive. Which means you need a specialized venue to use it (an empty room), or you need to be sitting.

So you think content designed to be fully immersive is a problem when it's too immersive. How often to people ask for a smaller TV because the big on just offers too immersive an experience?

Fully immersive is not a problem. It's a design objective. Needing an empty room or to be sitting is not a problem, it's a design criteria. Do you avoid going to the movie theater because you need to watch it sitting down? When you watch movies at home, do you find walking around while watching helps make the experience more enjoyable?

VR is content. And viewing that content as it was intended is not a problem at all. If you find it so, the tech is not for you. But saying this is a problem is like saying the fundamental problem with the iPhone is you have to look at the screen to use most of the functionality. It's just silly and misunderstands the entire design concept.

 

[ValO]

So you think content designed to be fully immersive is a problem when it's too immersive. How often to people ask for a smaller TV because the big on just offers too immersive an experience?

Fully immersive is not a problem. It's a design objective. Needing an empty room or to be sitting is not a problem, it's a design criteria. Do you avoid going to the movie theater because you need to watch it sitting down? When you watch movies at home, do you find walking around while watching helps make the experience more enjoyable?

VR is content. And viewing that content as it was intended is not a problem at all. If you find it so, the tech is not for you. But saying this is a problem is like saying the fundamental problem with the iPhone is you have to look at the screen to use most of the functionality. It's just silly and misunderstands the entire design concept.

VR is socially a disaster, i can' t see myself completely shut off the real world.
AR is the way to go. VR is a niche for amusement parks, lonely people, nerds, gamers, etc.
A portable version of the hololens, or a more sophisticated version of google glasses is the way to to go.
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That is extremely short-sighted, and wrong, of you.
VR will come bursting out of the gate & gain momentum by the day.
10'years ago, did you even imagine people being attached like leeches
to a 4-inch screened mobile, networked touchscreen computer?!?

Yes, i could and i can.
But i can look away from my phone when i want and talk to real people when i want. Just have to put yhe phone away, i can switch from looking at my phone and look at real people.
I can' t see myself interacting with people by looking at an generated image of them all the time, it is like 100% facetime all the way.
AR is the mix of the real en virtual world and will become mainstream, VR is the niche for entertainment for an avarage of one hour a day of relaxation.

 

[DevNull0]

VR is socially a disaster, i can' t see myself completely shut off the real world.
AR is the way to go. VR is a niche for amusement parks, lonely people, nerds, gamers, etc.
A portable version of the hololens, or a more sophisticated version of google glasses is the way to to go.

How is VR any more of those things than a TV in your own living room? How is spending a couple of hours in a VR experience any different than spending time watching a movie alone?

VR is a consumption device. It's a more immersive TV or computer monitor. To say people who use it are antisocial, nerds, lonely people while sheep with their noses in the iPhones aren't is just so ignorant.

AR is the mix of the real en virtual world and will become mainstream, VR is the niche for entertainment for an avarage of one hour a day of relaxation.

AR is a glorified heads-up display. It will be useful, but has no comparison to VR.

 

[ValO]

How is VR any more of those things than a TV in your own living room? How is spending a couple of hours in a VR experience any different than spending time watching a movie alone?

VR is a consumption device. It's a more immersive TV or computer monitor. To say people who use it are antisocial, nerds, lonely people while sheep with their noses in the iPhones aren't is just so ignorant.


AR is a glorified heads-up display. It will be useful, but has no comparison to VR.

Perhaps you are also a geek.

When I watch a movie or watch tv I don' t watch it by myself all the time. I have a family and like to watch things together, listen to their comments, discuss about what is on the tv.
When I am on my pc at work, I still communicate with my collegae' s, I don' t look at my screen all the time, interact with other people, make eye contact .
Same is when I am looking at my iPhone when I am in the company of friends or family . I' ll put it away when I am interacting with them or show them on-screen content like foto' s, tweets, etc.
Perhaps 4 hours a week VR would be useful to me, when I am alone and watch a movie or play a game on my own.

But if you are a person that doesn't like to interact with other people and is, like you call it yourself, submerged in your phone all the time. I can understand why you think VR is the next big thing, for you...

 

[samcraig]

Perhaps you are also a geek.

When I watch a movie or watch tv I don' t watch it by myself all the time. I have a family and like to watch things together, listen to their comments, discuss about what is on the tv.
When I am on my pc at work, I still communicate with my collegae' s, I don' t look at my screen all the time, interact with other people, make eye contact .
Same is when I am looking at my iPhone when I am in the company of friends or family . I' ll put it away when I am interacting with them or show them on-screen content like foto' s, tweets, etc.
Perhaps 4 hours a week VR would be useful to me, when I am alone and watch a movie or play a game on my own.

But if you are a person that doesn't like to interact with other people and is, like you call it yourself, submerged in your phone all the time. I can understand why you think VR is the next big thing, for you...

See - you have limited vision. The Oculus store already has a social networking app where you can get together with people in a virtual room and watch content together. So no - not ideal for people sitting in the same room with you. But it's been very cool to watch videos with people all over the world with it feeling like you're genuinely in the room with them because you can hear them, talk to them, see a big screen in front of you, switch seats, etc. Right now it's avatar based - but I can see that one day they would allow you to upload your own picture too. Right now though, when you turn your head to look at someone - that's what they see. In fact - anywhere they are looking, you can look over to them and see their head position and they can see yours. It's pretty cool.

 

[ValO]

See - you have limited vision. The Oculus store already has a social networking app where you can get together with people in a virtual room and watch content together. So no - not ideal for people sitting in the same room with you. But it's been very cool to watch videos with people all over the world with it feeling like you're genuinely in the room with them because you can hear them, talk to them, see a big screen in front of you, switch seats, etc. Right now it's avatar based - but I can see that one day they would allow you to upload your own picture too. Right now though, when you turn your head to look at someone - that's what they see. In fact - anywhere they are looking, you can look over to them and see their head position and they can see yours. It's pretty cool.

Yes, but is just a substitute of the real thing with real people I can meet and make appointments in bars, restaurants and theaters.
You love to sit in your living room alone, totally blinded from reality and meet people from all over the world.

Your cup of tea , I guess.
I' d prefer to do this with my family physically in the same room or have real friends come over. If I want too meet people I don' t know and watch a movie, I can go to the theater around the corner.

It is all about personal preference. I want to focus on my surroundings , and meet new people there. Not virtual drawings of people.
And I can' t see me wear blinded VR goggles all the time. When I go to work, work out, interact with other people, AR is the more practical solution I can use all the time while i keep track of my surroundings.

You have different preferences.
Let' s agree to disagree.

 

[samcraig]

Yes, but is just a substitute of the real thing with real people I can meet and make appointments in bars, restaurants and theaters.
You love to sit in your living room alone, totally blinded from reality and meet people from all over the world.

Your cup of tea , I guess.
I' d prefer to do this with my family physically in the same room or have real friends come over. If I want too meet people I don' t know and watch a movie, I can go to the theater around the corner.

It is all about personal preference. I want to focus on my surroundings , and meet new people there. Not virtual drawings of people.
And I can' t see me wear blinded VR goggles all the time. When I go to work, work out, interact with other people, AR is the more practical solution I can use all the time while i keep track of my surroundings.

You have different preferences.
Let' s agree to disagree.

Let's not be judgmental - at no time did I say what I prefer. I just said that it's cool and that it's possible to not be "isolated" in the VR experience.

For me - VR isn't an everyday/all the time thing. I don't think I would ever get into that just like a rarely watch TV. But it's a welcome additional method of entertainment/experience. It doesn't have to be all or nothing.

 

[Bubba Satori]

Unreal Engine 4 to get VR capabilities.
Presentation at the GDC March 16th.
http://www.theverge.com/2016/2/4/10908444/epic-unreal-engine-editor-vr-edition
http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/04/unreal-engine-create-in-vr/
https://www.unrealengine.com/vr-page

 

[DevNull0]

And I can' t see me wear blinded VR goggles all the time. When I go to work, work out, interact with other people, AR is the more practical solution I can use all the time while i keep track of my surroundings.

You keep repeating this, and I'm wondering where you got such a silly notion. A person would no more wear VR goggles when they work out, got to work, interact with other people than they would carry around a 55 inch TV in their arms wherever they go.

VR is not a wear all the time appliance. It's a wear in the comfort of your home while consuming content in private appliance.

Do you believe watch TV on a 4.7" iPhone is better than a large TV because you can carry the iPhone to work, use it when working out, watch TV on it while interacting with other people.

You seem to have no clue what VR is, and you're adamantly dismissing it as a silly little nerd toy even though you have no idea what you're talking about. You're being rude and insulting to people who like he product based on some made up fiction in your head about VR is and even though you've replied to countless posts from various people telling you that you have the wrong idea about VR you're keeping your mind sealed shut like a rusty trap.

You have different preferences.
Let' s agree to disagree.

My preference is to know what a product is and does before I pass judgement on it, especially in such a strong way in public. Your preference is not to.

My preference is to be more respectful, yours is to dismiss and insult people who disagree with you.

You believe you know what VR is, you really don't. So we'll have to disagree on those point and leave it at that.

 

[ValO]

You keep repeating this, and I'm wondering where you got such a silly notion. A person would no more wear VR goggles when they work out, got to work, interact with other people than they would carry around a 55 inch TV in their arms wherever they go.

VR is not a wear all the time appliance. It's a wear in the comfort of your home while consuming content in private appliance.

Do you believe watch TV on a 4.7" iPhone is better than a large TV because you can carry the iPhone to work, use it when working out, watch TV on it while interacting with other people.

You seem to have no clue what VR is, and you're adamantly dismissing it as a silly little nerd toy even though you have no idea what you're talking about. You're being rude and insulting to people who like he product based on some made up fiction in your head about VR is and even though you've replied to countless posts from various people telling you that you have the wrong idea about VR you're keeping your mind sealed shut like a rusty trap.



My preference is to know what a product is and does before I pass judgement on it, especially in such a strong way in public. Your preference is not to.

My preference is to be more respectful, yours is to dismiss and insult people who disagree with you.

You believe you know what VR is, you really don't. So we'll have to disagree on those point and leave it at that.

So VR is just an entertainment device , an addition to a games console and a replacement for a tv and pc offering a more submersive experience. And you can meet virtual images of people you know and don' t know.
When this is your cup of tea. Great! Have fun!

I let you have the last word about respect , etc. don' t want to go into a discussion about that topic with you. Too little time, I rather discuss with real people I know and care about, face to face , instead of a virtual discussion with a virtual person on a virtual forum.
But it sounds like you have the time, so please carry on...
I' ll check in from time to time.

 

[w00master]

I find it interesting that nearly all of the VR naysayers are those who have never experienced Oculus, Sony's VR, Valve's (aka HTC) VR Solution - Vive, or HoloLens.

Maybe some of you should experience first.