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Why Apple’s First VR Headset May Not Be the One You Buy

The next Apple mixed reality device is reportedly already in the works, and it may be much more consumer-friendly.

Apple’s long-expected, quite mysterious mixed reality headset seems ready to emerge any month now: Perhaps it’ll be announced as soon as Apple’s next WWDC developer’s conference, in June. The headset, which will enter an emerging landscape of hardware including Meta’s Quest 2 and Quest Pro, the PlayStation VR 2 and a bunch of other AR and VR devices, has been reported to be expensive, maybe have its own tethered processing device and perhaps be very limited in its launch features.

Reports also suggest that Apple’s own staff could be divided on whether this headset should launch now, in a not-quite-perfected state, or held for later on when it may approach a more functional pair of everyday glasses.

I’m not sure it makes a difference, because in all likelihood you’re not going to buy the first version anyway, which is expected to cost as much as $3,000. 

I don’t mean to sound dismissive, but it’s true: Barring some sort of miracle, there doesn’t seem to be any way Apple’s first-gen AR/VR device will be anything more than a sort of foot in the door. And, by the way, that’s exactly what Apple’s previous big product line entries were, too.

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The first Apple Watch wasn’t the same device it is now.

The first Apple Watch: Did you own one?

I remember reviewing the very first Apple Watch, in 2015, and finding it a pretty mixed bag. Nice design touches, really cool digital crown and… very slow. Also, expensive. And kind of complicated, with all its specific features and settings.

Odds are you didn’t own one. Apple added more useful features later: a far faster processor, a bigger screen, an onboard app store, better fitness functions, an always-on display. The price came down, too.

The Apple Watch’s biggest advantage now is its consistency. After generations of other smartwatches have come and gone, Apple has largely stayed the course and iterated on a theme.

The original iPhone: More nostalgia trip than good product

The first iPhone was the same story. I loved how it was a very small web-browsing and email-equipped iPod, and it went with me on my honeymoon. The 2G cellular data was terrible, and most of the features we associate with iPhones (video chat, GPS, Apple Pay, Touch ID or Face ID, an App Store) weren’t around. It was a fancy iPod phone.

The multitouch was impressive, and certain apps, like Google Maps, were stunning. People thought it was cool. Few people were ready to buy one.

AirPods: Initially mockable

I test-drove AirPods at Apple’s 2016 iPhone event, and a photo of me wearing them ended up becoming a meme. It was a given that they looked absurd. Yes, these were wireless earbuds, but wireless earbuds already existed. The price wasn’t bad, but plenty of people seemed happy with the cheap, free-with-iPhone wired earbuds that wouldn’t fall out of your ears and get lost, or didn’t look like cigarette butts sticking out of your ears.

But it didn’t take long for opinion on AirPods to shift, and now… well, they’re everywhere.

Meta Quest Pro virtual reality headsetMeta Quest Pro virtual reality headset

The Meta Quest Pro: Since its first VR headset in 2016, Meta is still trying to find a perfect form.

Scott Stein/CNET

How much patience does Apple have?

The big question is how much time Apple has to give to its headset, and multiple iterations of it, to succeed. That’ll be the difference between success and failure. Meta stuck with the Oculus Rift from 2016 to now, creating many versions before the Quest 2 finally started selling decently. It could take years before the real applications of VR and AR are figured out on a larger scale and wireless networks are able to take on the cloud processing that could allow these headsets to eventually work in smaller, lighter forms.

It could be years before input devices like Meta’s neural input wristbands are advanced enough to allow accurate gesture controls that could really be used to replace controllers and touchscreens. It may take several generations of hardware before enough people are in VR and AR to allow truly large-scale metaverse communities to feel meaningful, even after all these years waiting for the tech to arrive.

Apple’s headset will most likely involve every other product in its lineup, connecting with iPhones, iPads and Macs, enhancing the Apple Watch, and pairing with AirPods. It’ll need to bridge every OS and every service. That’s no small amount of work, and it’s doubtful that most of it will be enabled this year. 

Whatever next-gen, more affordable headset Apple is expected to work on next, or the eventual glasses it’s aiming for, will be closer to the end goal. As every other VR and AR hardware manufacturer also continues to flex and evolve its offerings, from HTC’s more glasses-like XR Elite to Qualcomm’s smaller AR glasses to Meta’s gradual pivot from VR to an AI-driven AR platform, we don’t know what the final form of any of these headsets will be.

And every VR and AR headset looks weird. I’ve never worn a headset that didn’t make me look either absurd or terrifyingly dystopian.

In that sense, whatever Apple’s first headset looks like doesn’t really matter, because the future for Apple and every other VR/AR company is bound to continue to change. This year looks like a make-or-break year for the metaverse, but in the long run, it’s also just a foot in the door.

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Technologies

Pope Francis’ Funeral: How to Stream Live or Watch the Replay

Here’s how to stream the pope’s funeral very early Saturday, and what you can expect to see during the service.

After a week of global mourning for Pope Francis, who died on Monday at age 88, the pope’s funeral will be celebrated on Saturday . Francis’ funeral will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. local time at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City (which is very, very early if you’re tuning in from the US or Canada), and he will be laid to rest at the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome. 

The Vatican will be livestreaming the papal funeral and procession, though not the burial, on its YouTube channel as it happens. The funeral will also be televised live on CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox, as well as on streaming services like Disney Plus, Hulu, Peacock and Paramount Plus. Due to the time difference, it seems likely that many interested North American viewers will catch it when it’s replayed later on Saturday. Numerous networks will rebroadcast the service later that day.

If you choose to stay up, or get up early, here’s when the live broadcast of the pope’s funeral will air in your time zone in the continental US on April 26:

  • ET: 4 a.m.
  • CT: 3 a.m.
  • MT: 2 a.m.
  • PT: 1 a.m.

The papacy of Pope Francis was notable for the progressive reforms he brought to the Roman Catholic Church. He appointed more than half of the current College of Cardinals and attempted to foster more positive attitudes toward members of the LGBT community and migrants worldwide.

What to expect from the funeral 

The funeral will follow many rituals, though not all traditional protocols will be followed. Most popes are buried in St. Peter’s Basilica or its grottoes, but the AP reports Francis chose the St. Mary Major Basilica to reflect his veneration of an icon of the Virgin Mary that is located there, the Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the People of Rome).

His funeral will be less elaborate than those of other popes per his own wishes. Francis simplified papal funeral rites last year, permitting his burial outside the Vatican, and emphasizing his role as a bishop rather than as pope (the pope is also the Bishop of Rome).

Previous popes were buried in three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead and one of oak. Francis requested to be buried in a single wooden, zinc-lined coffin and not to be placed in an elevated bier as other popes were.

The coffin will be taken from St Peter’s Basilica and placed on a dais in St Peter’s Square, where Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re will lead the service. After the service, the coffin will return to St Peter’s Basilica before it is carried across the River Tiber and to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major for burial. The ceremony is estimated to end around 2 p.m. local time, or four hours after it begins.

Pope Francis’ funeral Mass will be the first of nine Masses held daily at St. Peter’s until May 4. This is an ancient tradition of the Catholic Church that observes nine days of consecutive mourning. According to Vatican News, a different group of mourners will participate each day, though the Eucharistic celebrations are open to everyone.

Who will attend Pope Francis’ funeral?

Hundreds of people, including world leaders and royals, are expected to attend Pope Francis’ funeral. 

US president Donald Trump confirmed on his Truth Social Platform that he and first lady Melania Trump will be at the funeral. This will be Trump’s first foreign trip in his second term. He is expected to have a seat in the third row, though the Vatican has yet to release an official seating chart. It is tradition for the first row of seats to go to Catholic royalty, and the second row to non-Catholic royals.

Prince William, who is attending on behalf of King Charles, will sit in the second row, which is reserved for non-Catholic royals. Former president Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, devout Catholics, will also attend the funeral.

Conclave: What happens next to choose the new pope

After Pope Francis’ funeral, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church will vote on his successor in an assembly of cardinals known as a conclave.

There are many matters for the cardinals to settle before the conclave begins, but once it does, it can take days or even weeks to conclude. Two-thirds of the cardinals’ votes are required to elect the next pope. The conclave occurs behind closed doors and the vote tally is never made public.

Read more: Where to Watch Conclave, the Vatican Thriller About Electing a New Pope

Look for the white smoke

The ballots are burned after each round, and chemicals are added to the flames to produce black smoke if there’s no majority. When a new pope has been selected, the chemicals will be added to the flames so they produce white smoke. Crowds gather in St. Peter’s Square to watch for the results.

If you’re fascinated by the process, you can watch a dramatized version of the events in 2024 film Conclave.

In the movie, Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who spearheads the election of the next pope while investigating rumors about potential candidates. The film is based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris and is completely fictional — though it does represent some of the events of how actual papal conclaves take place. In March, the film won the Academy Award for best adapted screenplay.

You can stream Conclave on Amazon Prime Video, or rent it for $6 on Apple TV, Fandango at Home, YouTube or Google Play Movies.

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for April 26, #685

Hints and answers for Connections for April 26, #685.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle features a lot of short words, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. That purple category requires a lot of thinking — probably most people will solve it only by solving the other three and having four words left over. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Rainbow.

Green group hint: San Fernando ____.

Blue group hint: Think Robert.

Purple group hint: Mixed-up hue words.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Tint.

Green group: Valley.

Blue group: Bobs.

Purple group: Color anagrams.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is tint. The four answers are color, hue, shade and tone.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is valley. The four answers are dale, dell, glen and hollow.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Bobs. The four answers are Dole, Hope, Marley and Ross.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is color anagrams. The four answers are Dre (red), Gary (gray), genre (green) and lube (blue).

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 26, #215

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 215, for Saturday, April 26.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition is tough today. The purple category theme threw me because of one phrase I didn’t know. And let’s hope you’re familiar with college coach surnames. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Try to achieve.

Green group hint: Move through it.

Blue group hint: Sideline bosses.

Purple group hint: Like a carton.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: What one strives for.

Green group: Room to run.

Blue group: College football coaches.

Purple group: Box ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is what one strives for. The four answers are aim, goal, objective and target.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is room to run. The four answers are gap, hole, opening and space.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is college football coaches. The four answers are Day, Lanning, Smart and Stoops.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is box ____. The four answers are lacrosse, office, score and seat.

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