After one week with the Vision Pro, I’m convinced that there is a “there” there. Apple’s VR headset is a step change. But Apple’s software locks make it (currently) nothing more than a glorified iPad, despite having a limitless canvas.
The hardware is beautiful, something between an Apple Watch and my MacBook in design. I found comfort to be a non-issue – both bands were comfortable. The light shield fit me well.
Eye-tracking was very impressive. Gestures worked very well. Dragging windows to be very close and then scrolling through them as you would a giant iPad is one of the most futuristic computing experiences I’ve ever had.
Entertainment was fun! Dune was beautiful in the Apple TV’s Cinema mode. The pancake lenses lead to some flares in a movie with such dramatic, bright scenes against dark backgrounds, but never did I find it distracting. Casino was gripping, and felt perfect for a canvas as intimate as the Vision Pro.
Mac screen sharing worked surprisingly well. I never had a disconnection. I found text to be perfectly crisp for long (3+ hour sessions – plugged into AC power) of text work. I do want more screens, or the ability to share Mac windows individually. But for a V1? Consider me impressed.
And yet.
The Mac screen sharing support is the pressure release valve for the Vision Pro. It’s the canary in the coal mine that this will not be a platform for anything beyond what Apple deems a “spatial computer” should be for. I can’t install Python on my choice of shell, nor can I install my data tools. But! I can install them on my Mac, and cast them into Vision Pro! And yes, I can. And I did, for many days.
But it’s a hat on a hat.
I want a Terminal app for Vision OS. I want it to be able to elevate to full privileges (or near enough that I can accomplish the above without weird errors). I want developers to be able to monetize their apps as they see fit, experimenting with business models to sustain pro-app development on such a cool platform. I want to experiment with data workflow apps! And yet… I can’t get enough of the pieces installed on Vision OS for it to work in a developer environment, much less as something I create for others to use.
I’m so happy that the Mac has received a lot of attention and investment in the last few years. My M1 MacBook Air was amazing. My M2 MacBook Air is the nicest computer I’ve ever used. My work M2 MacBook Pro is a joy to use. It’s the bicycle for my mind.
Vision OS could be an airplane. But as it stands now, it’s Apple’s DisneyWorld.
I’m sending it back, but with the hope that time proves me wrong.
