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My guess is that the Vision Pro requires multiple voltages (the displays separate from the camera systems separate from the M2) and all of the power circuitry is part of the battery pack and those pins are the different voltage rails.
Bingo.

Which is the reason why it doesn't have a USB-C port on it for some dipstick to use to charge his iPhone.
 
My guess is that the Vision Pro requires multiple voltages (the displays separate from the camera systems separate from the M2) and all of the power circuitry is part of the battery pack and those pins are the different voltage rails.
I had the same thought, but then I remembered the other side (attaching to the headset) is just that simple twist-lock deal. I haven't seen a close-up of it, but it probably doesn't have nearly as many contacts (maybe just two?).

Doesn't make sense that they'd reinvent this connector for no reason, though, so I don't have a better theory!
 
For pass through power, shouldn’t the usb-c port be on the opposite side of the “fixed” cable? Just thinking from an ergonomics pov.
I would have thought the exact same thing, then I saw a review that showed when you have the USB-C plugged in to power and both cords are on the same side, you can still slip the battery pack in your pocket and have both cords sticking out of the top - so actually makes more sense in use.
 
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I had the same thought, but then I remembered the other side (attaching to the headset) is just that simple twist-lock deal. I haven't seen a close-up of it, but it probably doesn't have nearly as many contacts (maybe just two?).

Doesn't make sense that they'd reinvent this connector for no reason, though, so I don't have a better theory!
It's really hard to catch, but in some of the unboxing videos (this screenshot from Brian Tong @ 10:10) you can see the connector. Inside there is a ring with 5 or 6 unevenly spaced connection points, as well as the center point that would likely be ground.

 

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Does this theoretically mean someone could make an adapter or bigger third party battery it can be attached too?

Quite the opposite, they've probably put smarts into the battery itself and the cable so that the cable will only work with apple batteries.

If that connector was just a vanilla usb-c cable; then people could buy any powerbank with a USB-C connector and use that instead of paying apple $200.
 
This is a 13V battery. If Apple used a USB-C (or even a traditional lightning) connection some bozo would try to plug some sort of [standard 5V] USB connector into it and fry the traditional USB device. There are safety and lawsuit prevention rationale behind a different type of connector rather than USB.
True but USB-C already utilizes many different voltages depending on the Power Delivery spec (last I checked 48V is even possible now). All of these modern chargers have handshake protocols to make sure things don't get fried. They won't supply higher voltages (or maybe any voltage depending on the model) than the standard 5V if an unknown device is plugged in.
 
It's really hard to catch, but in some of the unboxing videos (this screenshot from Brian Tong @ 10:10) you can see the connector. Inside there is a ring with 5 or 6 unevenly spaced connection points, as well as the center point that would likely be ground.

Thanks!! I had searched for a close-up of that and couldn't find one yet.
 
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wonder what all those extra pins are for? wouldn't think you would need that many just for power. Maybe there is an undocumented data transfer connection after all.
I don’t think it’s there yet, but they’re making sure the cable from day one is ready.

They’ve got a ton of patents on magnetic locking data transfer mechanism that will likely apply here just as much as when the iPhone goes port less (potentially derailed by the usb c mandate).
 
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Gotta love how they just had to go with a proprietary connector to ensure battery packs going for $200 don't suffer any market competition from cheaper 3rd-parties.
on the bright side, the battery pack has a usb c port, so you could just duct tape it onto the back of a large 3rd party usb c battery pack.
 
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The Lightning connector is much more durable than the USB-C connector, which over time becomes lose and makes a bad connection.

My one got loose after almost two years of every day use. I got more than my money’s worth.
 
What does “passthrough charging” mean in this case? You plug a power cable in that can charge the battery and passthrough to charge the headset too?

I didn’t think the headset had batteries to charge, so this seems like regular vanilla charging to me.
 
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I had the same thought, but then I remembered the other side (attaching to the headset) is just that simple twist-lock deal. I haven't seen a close-up of it, but it probably doesn't have nearly as many contacts (maybe just two?).

Doesn't make sense that they'd reinvent this connector for no reason, though, so I don't have a better theory!

The other side has as many contacts in the band, but only 7 in magnetic connector. So hard to say. Particularly since some pins in USB-C are optional or not needed for all versions of spec.
 
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If there's no PRAM in the headset, why would you unplug it anyway? Just and charge the thing thru the USB port. You swap the battery out, and anything not on the cloud is gone.
 
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