Tim Cook: Not Too Long From Now, You'll Wonder How You Led Your Life Without AR

[coolfactor]

I might be in the minority, but I have no interest in AR. Sorry Tim.

You haven't seen Apple's take on AR yet. The best is yet to come.

 

[macduke]

“Press X to doubt.”

X​

 

[Radeon85]

If it’s £3000 it’s DOA

 

[TSE]

We all know he's most likely right. Apple has hit homerun after homerun and their AR headset is going to be just another checked box for them.

This is going to be one of those threads in the ilk of when the iPod and iPhone were released filled with haters.

 

[till]

I'm excited that Cook is excited, it means Apple is taking this pretty seriously. There are plenty of ways to do AR/VR badly (I think the tech probably isn't *quite* there yet, kinda like the first gen iPhone), but there's also incredible potential to be at least as transformative as the smartphone was.

 

[Mr. Dee]

I think I have been hearing this advertisement from Tim about AR since the devil was a boy.
I guess the Lidar camera and arrows pointing you in the right direction as well as being able to see what an iPhone or Mac is gonna look like on your desk before you buy it.

 

[BrownyQ]

I'll buy into Augmented Reality when I can do like Washu in Tenchi Muyo: hold out my hands without any external devices, a keyboard and display appear before me, and it responds with taptics as I type seemingly in midair.

 

[DrJR]

I’m still waiting for an upgraded hand washing app for my Apple Watch Ultra. Let’s start there, Tim.

 

[ct2k7]

I think for some cases it'd be beneficial - e.g time with remote members of family, but I would miss the human touch and feel - and this is at the crux of AR/VR, it's practical for things, and impractical for the basic human needs.

 

[MayaUser]

Of course! Mr. Tim Cook seems very confident. But the $3000.00 price is way too steep. This AR/VR might be the last product we will see before Tim Cook retires.

if the apple car is still a thing, never...Tim Cook wants to be the face on that too

 

[Moriakum]

Loved him in Jurassic World: Dominion.

 

[Lesser Evets]

There will be an instant "x-ray" app making everyone naked... then the fur hits the fan.

 

[ItchyRat2160]

I'm sure AR/VR is going to be interesting when it's actually good and works (omg had a work presentation in the meta verse and its DREADFUL). But I'm never going to be so stunned by VR that I wish I'd had it in my life previously. Like... its just not that important. It never will be.

 

[Freida]

If thats the case and you don't have any Apple products then I wonder why are you even here wasting your time?

Its hilarious, don't you think?

I still lead my life without any Apple products and it is unlikely that that will change any time soon. Augmented reality will be misused by the big companies to inject ads into real life. Who would want that?

 

[JippaLippa]

I can see it being used for porn, gaming and education. (In that order)

Why not all 3 at the same time?
The possibilities are endless.

 

[antiprotest]

This is a super exaggeration that reduces his credibility. It makes me doubt if he understand either life or technology.

People can still live without even a smartphone. And some people, even if they need a computer, can more than get by with a Chromebook. In other categories, some people don't even own a microwave, or an air conditioner, or a TV.

And these things make a bigger difference than AR since they take people from zero tech to mainstream tech. If even these things are not totally necessary to many people's life, AR would make even less of a difference.

 

[Toratek]

I quite clearly remember a lot of similar comments about the original iPhone. Surprised but not surprised to see the same genre of slack jawed commentary here.

 

[erikkfi]

These days I wonder if the people who grew up without the internet actually had it better.

 

[mikethemartian]

 

[antiprotest]

I quite clearly remember a lot of similar comments about the original iPhone. Surprised but not surprised to see the same genre of slack jawed commentary here.

Smartphones are still not necessary to survival or to function in society. And smartphones make a much bigger difference than AR would. His error is in portraying it as a must have instead of a nice to have.

 

[quatermass]

er.... no, I don't think so. I'll carry on, muddling my way through good ole Reality 1.0.
But it's a funny thing... I was outside earlier and the quality of the rendering was un-be-lievable! The amount of detail, wherever you looked and the lighting and shadows.... there were even objects you could pick up, and they felt solid and heavy! As if they were real! And there were people you could go up to and talk to, and it was all real time - no lag at all! Really great conversations!
Mind you, the clouds looked a bit dodgy.... nothing like in Microsoft Flight Sim....

 

[yaxomoxay]

The use-case I'm imagining for this has me seriously pumped - though I have zero reason to believe this will be a reality.

I'm thinking this will be a content consumption device, but also a work device.

Imagine sitting at a desk that has a mouse and keyboard, but no monitor. You put on your Apple headset, and an augmented version of MacOS is displayed infront of your eyes. The 'monitor(s)' you would use are projected by the device, while you still see the room you're in, and the desk you're sitting at.

This would allow you to have as many screens as you like, at whatever sizes you like, while arranging and manipulating them as you see fit (with a mouse, as we do now, or maybe with your hands). Alternatively, there may not be any 'screens' at all, but you simply move windows/apps around, or snap them to fixed locations; there are many possibilities.

Being able to see the world around you through the device would be key to this working - think AR, rather than VR. Information is projected into your world, as you can look down at your keybord for typing, or grab a pen and paper to jot down a note, or reach for your cup of coffee. I don't think a fully virtual world would be ideal for practical work.

With the way AR has been demonstrated in recent years, I don't think it's a stretch to think these virtual screens could be fixed to a certain position in the room - distance from you, as well as location relative to you as you move around.

Not only would this system allow for nearly infinite ways of organizing and displaying your work, but it would be familiar enough so as to not scare off regular people who aren't tech enthusiasts. Granted, there will be significant push-back from those who think they will look silly, but once they get over that, and look at this as being akin to sitting at your desk in front of three giant monitors, they can simply work within MacOS as they normally would - only with more freedom.

I don't think this is a novelty. I think this has the potential to revolutionise how we work day-to-day.

Yes and we will have to pay for each of those virtual items. Do you want a virtual desk? $150/month. Do you want three screens? $20/each per month. Hey can’t go to the office naked, buy some virtual brand clothes and Nike shoes for $200/month.

The poor/rich divide will be even greater.

 

[Macalway]

I'm not sure. What I've seen so far is unremarkable. Little floating crap.

Ain't the Matrix.

 

[NMBob]

If I could slip on a pair of glasses and some rubber gloves and have the program walk me through something like an appendectomy I guess that would be OK.

 

[Digital Dude]

Looks like a real ‘get off my lawn’ moment photo.