- Apple cropped photos of the Vision Pro headset to remove the battery pack, making it look less cumbersome.
- Journalists were not allowed to take photos or videos of the Vision Pro's hardware during a press briefing.
- Apple sees the cord from the battery pack as getting in the way of making the headset more mobile.
Archive link: https://archive.ph/GYPuS
This is why VR will not be a thing yet again. Last time the problem was displays weren't compact enough and the computers weren't powerful enough. Now the problem is that batteries are too heavy and it's basically a smartphone strapped to your face.
Get back to me when you have something like a chunky pair of glasses that can overlay a 3D world onto the real one, or even replace it entirely, and last for hours and hours and hours.
Which will be never, because that much energy density would probably explode.
Battery is weight. Putting that weight off the head and into a back pocket is imho a very acceptable solution to the weight problem.
And for the record, VR is already “a thing”. Has been for years now. It’s mainstream, it’s on multiple platforms, and even has standalone offerings.
“Chunky pair of glasses” already exists as a VR device, but they are highly personalized and prohibitively expensive.
As for “it’s basically a smartphone strapped to your face” I’m not sure how you’d break away from that? A smartphone is just an ultra compact PC with a screen. A VR device like you’re talking about is… just an ultra compact PC with 2 screens and some lenses. The reason they are so similar in your mind is because they are essentially the same thing, just in a different form factor.
True, but having a cable attached to a headset feels pretty un-free.
Would a big battery attached to the back of the headset be more free?
Attaching the same battery to your belt is only an issue if you're playing nude. Even then you can wear it like a crossbody bag in a pinch =)