In the wake of Apple’s official unveiling of Vision Pro, their groundbreaking mixed reality headset, fresh information is emerging regarding its availability and the functionality of corrective lenses. Here are some noteworthy details recently shared by Apple.
Apple has announced that Vision Pro is slated to be released early next year, with a starting price of $3499. The headset will be exclusively available for purchase through apple.com and Apple Stores in the United States.
For customers in other countries, such as the UK and beyond, Apple has stated that the availability of Vision Pro will be extended to these regions “later next year.”
Age requirement
As per the provided information, on paper or legally, Vision Pro has an age requirement of 13 years and older. Apple may employ various measures, such as Apple ID compatibility, to help enforce this restriction and limit usage based on age. While the practical enforcement of age restrictions can present challenges, Apple is likely to utilize its existing mechanisms, such as age verification through Apple IDs, to promote compliance with the stated age requirement.
Glasses
To provide the best possible experience, Vision Pro requires magnetically attached corrective lenses from Zeiss for users who wear glasses. While other headsets typically employ physical spacers to accommodate glasses, Vision Pro’s advanced eye tracking capabilities, which contribute to the functionality of visionOS, likely make glass reflectivity a hindrance. As a result, the use of magnetically attached lenses is necessary, although it may be a less convenient solution for some users, including Tim Cook.
It’s important to note that the vision correction accessories, such as the Zeiss lenses, are sold separately, which could contribute to the starting price of $3499 for the Vision Pro headset. However, Apple also mentions that “not all prescriptions are supported,” indicating that there may be limitations on the range of supported vision corrections.
Excitingly, Apple has introduced a hardware preview of Vision Pro that can be experienced through augmented reality (AR) on your iPhone or iPad. While it may not offer a fully immersive “hands-on demo” of the headset, this AR experience provides a much more detailed glimpse into the capabilities of Vision Pro than was previously available before the Apple event.
To access the AR demo, you can use Safari on your iPhone or iPad and locate it towards the bottom of the webpage mentioned.