A year after Apple introduced the Vision Pro and nearly four months after its silent release, the spatial computing headset still feels surprisingly undercooked. Simple features like the ability to organize icons on the visionOS home screen are nowhere to be found. Content that truly showcases Vision Pro’s immersive capabilities is still rare ( it was just a glimpse of what was possible).
according to The company will showcase visionOS 2 at the Worldwide Developers Conference ((WWDC 2024), but the update will mainly focus on polishing the Vision Pro experience. We can expect native Vision Pro versions of Apple software (the headset currently uses iPad versions of many apps), as well as Passwords Apple’s core AI function, such as apps and new environments, will be called “Apple Intelligence” to colonize the term “AI”.
Other than minor polish and bug fixes, this is what I’d like to see in Vision Pro at WWDC 2024 (or really, anytime next year, Apple!).
iPhone and iPad screen mirroring
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the Vision Pro is how it refuses to play nice with the iPhone. If you ever need to unlock your phone to use an authentication app or quickly read a Slack message, you’ll need to remove Vision Pro to use FaceID, or enter a PIN and peek into the headset’s middle cameras. Why?!
If Apple can deliver a macOS mirror that’s already sharp and lag-free, it’s not a big leap to give us something similar for iPhones and iPads. Of course, ideally, you can manage your text messages and other tasks on Vision Pro without relying on other devices. Although the Messages app doesn’t always receive texts as quickly as the iPhone, and its text and contact history is often different.
A quick pop-up suggestion of your iPhone screen will eliminate these problems, keeping you in the flow of whatever you’re working on in Vision Pro. As for the lack of FaceID, Apple can combine iPhone authentication with your Apple ID. You already have to sign in to Vision Pro with a PIN or Optical ID scan, as well as your ID itself, so Apple already knows who you are.
When it comes to iPads, screen mirroring can be just as useful as it is on Macs. If you were writing a document on iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard, why shouldn’t you be able to continue doing so in Vision Pro? Supporting less powerful iPads can also be useful, as they can mirror downloaded media or games. Why download the M2 processor of the headset when you can use the M2 chip in the iPad Air?
Taking this concept a step further, it would also be nice to finally have the Apple Watch mirrored. When using Vision Pro, imagine lifting your wrist and getting a bird’s-eye view of notifications or media controls. What if you could instantly see a 300-inch version of the Apple TV home screen as soon as you sat down on the couch? Apple has the potential to shape reality itself when using a headset, so why not go for it for its own devices?
More local Vision Pro programs
Recent rumors suggest that we’ll see native versions of Apple apps on Vision Pro (many are just repackaged iPad apps right now), but I’m hoping to see more developers jump on the platform. Still no Vision Pro app for Netflix, YouTube or Spotify. If you wish to use these services, you must log in to a web browser or a . This is not the seamless spatial computing future I promised Apple.
Now, I’m sure it will be difficult for Apple to make YouTube play nice with Vision Pro, especially since Google recently made a mysterious partnership with Google. . But not being able to get Netflix and Spotify on headphones remains a big problem for Apple. Without the apps we live with every day, Vision Pro will always look undercooked.
Stream audio to speakers and home theater systems
The Vision Pro’s built-in speakers are good, but they lack the depth of a proper pair of bookshelf speakers or Apple’s own HomePod. And they certainly don’t have the low-end punch you’d get from a full home theater system and subwoofer. So why can’t we easily send audio to these devices?
Let’s AirPlay to HomePods on a whim! Let me sit in my home theater and enjoy the massive speakers that surround me as I watch Fury Road Near IMAX scale in Vision Pro! While I enjoy using AirPods Pros for immersive audio on the go, they can’t hold a candle to the Dolby Atmos-equipped towers in my basement.
I’m sure home theater users aren’t a high priority for Apple, but who else is spending a lot of money on hardware that isn’t meant for everyone right now?
