Apple Vision Pro Virtual Keyboard Blasted As 'Complete Write-Off'

[MacRumors]

Anyone paying attention to Apple's Vision Pro headset unveiling at WWDC 2023 will have seen its virtual keyboard demo. The keyboard floats in mid-air, allowing you to input text in your spatial computing environment while wearing the device.

However, anyone planning to ditch their physical keyboard may want to hold onto it for a little while longer: According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, the virtual keyboard experience in visionOS 1.0 is "a complete write-off," and most people will want to use a Bluetooth keyboard instead.

"The Vision Pro virtual keyboard is a complete write-off at least in 1.0," wrote Gurman in an X post. "You have to poke each key one finger at a time like you did before you learned how to type. There is no magical in-air typing. You can also look at a character and pinch. You'll want a Bluetooth keyboard."

According to Apple, the buttons on the virtual keyboard are raised above the platter to mimic the affordance of pushing physical keys, and the keyboard even includes feedback via spatial sound effects to "compensate for the missing tactile information."

Going on what Gurman said though, it doesn't sound like Apple has quite perfected the experience, which is probably always going to be degraded by the fatigue caused by having to hold your hands in the air to type, regardless of what Apple does to improve it in future software updates. Fortunately, Vision Pro can wirelessly connect to Mac accessories including the Magic Keyboard and the Magic Trackpad for more traditional tactile input.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1745907431564063208

Starting at $3,499, Apple Vision Pro pre-orders open on Friday, January 19 at 5.00 a.m. PST, and the device goes on sale in the U.S. on Friday, February 2, with availability in Canada and the United Kingdom expected to follow later in the year.

Article Link: Apple Vision Pro Virtual Keyboard Blasted As 'Complete Write-Off'

 

[Smartass]

The only effective way of typing is via physical keyboard. Humans have this really great feature, thats called "fingers", which allow them to touch, feel and use stuff, even when not looking directly at it. Believe it or not, It's highly effective. But unfortunately, majority of developers and UX designers these days think, that the answer to "what comes next after physical keyboard/buttons?" is a solution via touchscreen. You can see this sheer stupidity in modern cars like Tesla, Mercedes, Audi, BMW etc. where they keep removing phyiscal buttons, and replacing them with touchscreen. Typing "in-air" like this keyboard utilizes, is on same level as touchscreen typing - It's annoying, it's cumbersome and it's stupid.

 

[Nimrad]

This will stay as a backup solution for the foreseeable future.

 

[foobarbaz]

Typing "in-air" like this keyboard utilizes, is on same level as touchscreen typing - It's annoying, it's cumbersome and it's stupid.

Unlike touch screens, this actually has a huge benefit: You don't need to have a carry/get/go to a physical thing.

If you actually write something long, you should sit down at your desk with a keyboard. But using a keyboard for every little text input would severely impact the flexibility of this device. It's a shame if it's not good, but at least there's also speech input.

 

[one more]

Give it time, people, the thing has not even been released yet!

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Physical keyboards will be hard to beat. Same ideas as those 2 screen laptops they showed at CES where you can either use a physical or virtual keyboard. Everyone agreed the virtual keyboard is not a great experience to use.

 

[gpat]

Just give me one to use as the definitive portable monitor for my Macbook.
You can keep whatever gimmicky software and sensors you developed.

 

[contacos]

So basically you are paying an 3K upgrade fee for higher resolution on Vision Pro. Everything else reminds me of my Quest 3 with actually more limitations (no sideloading etc).

Is Beat Saber going to be available on it btw? Best thing ever

 

[Kylo83]

It needs controllers like the quest 3

 

[tuckerjj]

Apparently less than 20% of people can touch type so it sounds like the virtual keyboard will be fine for most people, and those who can touch type are going to want to do this with a physical keyboard anyway, so 🤷🏻‍♂️

 

[tazinlwfl]

This is why it’s “voice-first” for text entry. It has been since the reveal. Look at a text field and start speaking what you want to type.

The virtual keyboard was always a backup.

Physical keyboards will be for a certain “high productivity” workflow but not necessary for most users.

 

[wikiverse]

Oh man, I can't wait to spent more money on a bluetooth keyboard to be able to use my $3500 monitor that no one else can see for basic tasks like typing. It's all so lightweight and mobile. Pretty soon, we won't need to type we'll just be flinging windows all over the place and evolving into crab people. This is the future.

Apple couldn't even get the iPad to be a productive tool without an external keyboard and a pencil, why did anyone at Apple think that the future of computers is just moving windows around in a virtual space with pinching gestures?

 

[tazinlwfl]

It needs controllers like the quest 3

 

[TechRemarker]

Anyone paying attention to Apple's Vision Pro headset unveiling at WWDC 2023 will have seen its virtual keyboard demo. The keyboard floats in mid-air, allowing you to input text in your spatial computing environment while wearing the device.

However, anyone planning to ditch their physical keyboard may want to hold onto it for a little while longer: According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, the virtual keyboard experience in visionOS 1.0 is "a complete write-off," and most people will want to use a Bluetooth keyboard instead.
According to Apple, the buttons on the virtual keyboard are raised above the platter to mimic the affordance of pushing physical keys, and the keyboard even includes feedback via spatial sound effects to "compensate for the missing tactile information."

Going on what Gurman said though, it doesn't sound like Apple has quite perfected the experience, which is probably always going to be degraded by the fatigue caused by having to hold your hands in the air to type, regardless of what Apple does to improve it in future software updates. Fortunately, Vision Pro can wirelessly connect to Mac accessories including the Magic Keyboard and the Magic Trackpad for more traditional tactile input.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1745907431564063208

Starting at $3,499, Apple Vision Pro pre-orders open on Friday, January 19 at 5.00 a.m. PST, and the device goes on sale in the U.S. on Friday, February 2, with availability in Canada and the United Kingdom expected to follow later in the year.

Article Link: Apple Vision Pro Virtual Keyboard Blasted As 'Complete Write-Off'

It’s not meant to replace keyboards but there in a pinch when you don’t have a keyboard since I’d rather a poor experience on a virtual keyboard than no option at all. Just like how I only had my Apple Watch one time and needed to text a person where I couldn’t speak aloud and so was grateful for typing on the watch option even tho that’s probably worse than this virtual keyboard.

 

[cosmichobo]

Steve Jobs would NEVER have allowed this to go to market...

 

[Tito360]

So basically you are paying an 3K upgrade fee for higher resolution on Vision Pro. Everything else reminds me of my Quest 3 with actually more limitations (no sideloading etc).

Is Beat Saber going to be available on it btw? Best thing ever

If you have 3k go ahead buy that’s one mortage payment n food lol

 

[koil]

If anyone is surprised by this news I have a bridge to sell you.

 

[Tito360]

Sure I’ll buy that bridge

 

[contacos]

If you have 3k go ahead buy that’s one mortage payment n food lol

Oh I would never

 

[klasma]

This will stay as a backup solution for the foreseeable future.

So it replaces Time Machine??

 

[NMBob]

It must be bad. The picture shows three keys pressed at the same time and the person's fingers aren't even touching them. It's not even suggesting a ! character.

 

[nuff_said]

So something worse than butterfly keys? /s

Jokes aside, I suspect this could be one reason - not the main reason - why Apple is rumoured to be working on “SiriGPT” and advanced LLM. Until they’ve figured out how to dramatically improve this voice input has to be infinitely better than what it is right now. After all, this is Cook’s icing on the cake to his Apple legacy.

 

[NMBob]

So it replaces Time Machine??

Geeze, and I only thought you could backup the present.

 

[k1121j]

I love seeing all these comments the nay sayers etc. it reminds me of the people who said the touch screen would never work. 🙄 Calm your britches y’all let’s wait and see.

 

[Antoniosmalakia]

I don't think it really matters how brilliant (or not) the virtual keyboard is, because once the novelty of Vision Pro wears off, it'll sit and gather dust.