Rumors that Apple will announce a virtual reality headset at its Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday have sent competitors into a frenzy. Meta announced its new Meta Quest 3 on Thursday. Lenovo released its latest ThinkReality VRX headset. Suddenly, a niche market that was struggling to capture a wide audience has many more eyes on it.
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“It’s going to be a validation that this really is going to be the next chapter of technology and how we interact with it and consume it,” says George Jijiashvili, principal analyst at Omdia, a tech research and advisory firm. “If they pull it off in terms of making that headset really compelling and having actually useful apps and functions, then it will serve as a product that everyone looks up to.”
Apple has invited some developers to watch the WWDC keynote event at Apple Park in Cupertino, California, but for those who are unable to attend, Apple has highlighted a range of “Beyond WWDC” events that are happening next week. These events are designed for developers who want to meet up for learning, networking, and more.
[In] 2020, Apple acquired NextVR, a company that was focused on creating VR experiences for viewing live events like sporting events and concerts. [...] The work on content like this dates back over a decade. NextVR was founded in 2009 and built a wide library of content in the years prior to the Apple acquisition. With Apple’s pile of cash and connections, it’s easy to assume that NextVR has been able to further ramp up the pace at which this type of content is created.
During their short lifespan – to put it in perspective, we are now at the equivalent of 1950 where TV drama is concerned, and 1912 for widely available recorded music – podcasts have loudly made their presence felt. But their impact has stretched far beyond the podcast app on your phone. The form is also waging a stealthy campaign to remake pop culture: nudging comedy, television, film, celebrity and even music in new directions.
Do I detect a wee bit of an ego issue? It appears that Bill never got over the many years that Steve Jobs was praised as the true visionary, and not him.
Has any of these VR/AR/xR companies put up an ad to "Welcome Apple. Seriously."?
:-)
Two more days. And we will find out how serious Apple is, and where Apple is serious about.
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Thanks for reading.