Apple and virtual reality
What does Apple think of VR? How long will we have to wait to test Apple’s virtual reality and augmented reality viewers? Why did Apple buy the startup Metaio, one of the world’s leading augmented reality companies?
In recent months, these three questions have been repeated in all the industry blogs and magazines, but there is still no concrete evidence showing the type of glasses or giving possible dates for the market launch of this product. Let’s try to analyze Apple’s activities in virtual and augmented reality…
First, the Cupertino-based company has hired Doug Bowman, one of the world’s leading virtual reality experts. Bowman has already won numerous awards as a researcher, and although his goal at Apple has not yet been revealed, it is certain to be an innovative and groundbreaking project for the general public.
In addition to the patents that Apple has filed in recent months, the company has acquired several specialized companies such as
Metaio y Primesense a company known for creating the technology embedded in the Kinect sensor for Xbox360. It has also recently acquired the startup Perceptio, which specializes in artificial intelligence and computer vision.
In light of this information, let’s try to analyze again the main question: what does Apple think about virtual reality?
Apple CEO Tim Cook, during a presentation of the financial results of the first quarter of 2016, has stated that “virtual reality is absolutely fantastic and allows the development of very interesting and captivating applications”. Cook does not see virtual reality as a software and hardware niche oriented only to the geek / nerd / video game world, but rather as a technology that will become mainstream for all users and will have endless applications in multiple sectors, from the general public to areas such as sports, tech, travel, industry, design, real estate, fashion and many more.
However, with the acquisition of the prolific startup Metaio, Apple is ahead of its many well-prepared competitors: Microsoft with Hololens, Google with Cardboard and its new project currently under development, Facebook with Oculus Rift, Samsung with Gear VR Sony with PlayStation VR and HTC with Vive to name a few among the most prominent.
In addition to the various models of virtual glasses, we must not forget the numerous accessories numerous accessories that are already available on the market, compatible with most of the models of glasses that allow you to experience augmented reality in the first person.
At this point, it is clear that Apple does not want to be excluded from this great market revolution that is beginning to take on the features of a technological revolution comparable to the birth of the Internet. If we make the proper distinction, VR brings sociocultural changes to our lives that will influence modern generations and those to come, as they will have such powerful technologies from the earliest stages of their lives in terms of empathy and immersiveness.
To conclude, we quote a splendid news item that appeared in Business Insider just a few days ago: Goldman Sachs believes that, within ten years, the virtual reality market will surpass that of traditional television. There is reason to look forward to what is to come and to continue to strive to create quality content adapted to the real needs of users.