Technologies

Apple Vision Pro: 5 Cringey Things to Not Do in a $3,500 VR/AR Headset

Commentary: Apple’s coming-soon headset will cost $3,500, but can you really put a price on never having to look at your kids with your own eyes?

I was watching with interest on Monday when Apple introduced the Vision Pro mixed reality headset at WWDC. It’s not really in the same ballpark as the simple Meta Quest 2 that I use to go bowling in my living room. Maybe not on the same planet. When it comes out in 2024, it will cost $3,499 — 10 times the cost of the Meta Quest 2.

Let us pause briefly to read that again: $3,499. Almost four thousand dollars. I don’t know about you, but I will not be picking up one of these on an idle Saturday trip to Best Buy.

CNET’s Scott Stein is one of the few people who actually got to try out the headset. He says the Apple Vision Pro is amazing, with a fluid interface and stunning cinematic fidelity when you’re watching a movie. Our WWDC recap unrolls the complex elements that make the headset so pricey.

«Technically speaking, the Vision Pro is a computer, with an M2 chip found on Apple’s highest-end computers,» CNET’s recap notes.

I’m old enough to remember when the thought of personally owning a computer was as laughable as paying this price for a headset seems to me today. So eventually, I’m sure, the production will be refined, and prices will come down. The immersive entertainment looks unreal, and some of the other Minority Report/Star Trek-style uses for the device are truly impressive.

But in the meantime, I’ve watched Apple’s 9-minute video on the headset (I feel like I should say «the $3,500 headset» every time). And there are definitely some uses for the Vision Pro that I will not be attempting, even if the day comes when I can afford it.

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Watch this: First Impressions of Apple’s Vision Pro Mixed Reality Headset

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Working in Excel

The most-memed element of the Vision Pro promotion was the fact that Apple demonstrated how Microsoft Excel, Word and Teams can run inside the headset, with your eyes controlling the user interface. Look, there are some really cool things a headset can do, but thrusting you face-first into pivot tables is not one of them.

«I want Excel pumped directly to my retinas» is not something I’ve personally ever thought, cracked one Twitter user.

Talking to real people without taking off the headset

In the promo video, a woman wearing the headset is joined by (presumably) her teenage daughter, who sits down on the couch and chats with her as if it’s perfectly normal that mom’s eyes are behind tinted ski goggles. They barely say more than one word to each other (of course, it’s «sushi»), but I keep wanting to scream through the screen and tell the mom to take one second, push up the headset and just talk to her kid, face to face.

Thanks to Apple’s EyeSight feature, you can at least see the mom’s eyes through the headset, which you can’t do with the Meta Quest 2. But even that is one super-duper creepy feature, as CNET’s Corinne Reichert points out.

Looking at home photos – alone

There’s a scene in the Apple video where someone sits on the couch and starts virtually flicking through their family photos. Admittedly, it’s pretty cool when a panorama of what looks like an iceberg wraps around them, especially if you’ve always wondered what the Titanic saw on April 15, 1912.

But the guy seems kind of lonely, looking at photos alone. If he could share what he’s seeing with his family, it might be a neat reminiscing experience. For now, I’m OK looking at digital photos on my phone or laptop, where I can share them with others.

Taking photos

There’s another scene in the Apple video where a headset wearer moves over to where two little girls are blowing soap bubbles (inside the house, but that’s a whole other issue). Instead of sitting down beside them to play and interact, he kneels in front of them, headset on, to take 3D photos of the fun. Why use your own eyes to look at your kids when you can stay one level removed?

Airplane mode

The promo video showed a woman on an airplane watching a movie in luxurious 3D, as if she’s living in the scenes of the film. I couldn’t get past the impracticality of it all. There are a million little distractions on the plane – flight attendants offering drinks, pilots announcing turbulence, people in my row asking me to get up so they can slip past.

I can immerse myself in a 3D movie at home, but it just seems rude to plunge yourself into your own private cinema at 33,000 feet and expect not to be disturbed. But then, I fly coach, and the folks with $3,500 to drop on a headset might be flying private.

But if the Vision Pro is your dream device, start saving. There’s no exact release date yet, but 2024 is just half a year away.

More from WWDC

Technologies

Razer’s Wolverine V3 Pro 8K Controller Won’t Replace My Mouse and Keyboard, but Here’s Where It Shines

I applaud the absurdly high polling rate, six extra remappable buttons and TMR sticks, but let me tell you why I’m sticking with my keyboard and mouse for most games I play.

The Razer Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC controller was not built for me, but admittedly, this has more to do with me as a gamer than the controller itself. I grew up playing the PlayStation 3 and PS4 consoles, cutting my teeth on slim, compact DualSense controllers. Over the past five years, I’ve gamed exclusively on my PC and have grown accustomed to the increased precision of a mouse and keyboard.

The Razer Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC controller is the antithesis of a DualSense controller. It’s a chunky piece of hardware that might feel natural if you were raised on an Xbox and its bulky controllers, but it took me multiple gaming sessions to get acclimated to the sheer size of the Wolverine V3 and how it fit into my hands, especially since I don’t use a claw grip.

Size aside, this is a PC controller with every bell and whistle you can think of — and its price of $200 reflects that. The 8,000Hz polling rate ensures buttery smooth inputs with no lag, and tunnel magnetoresistance joysticks make every in-game movement feel fluid and calculated. Six extra remappable buttons help you up your game — they’re super handy for hero shooters like Marvel Rivals and hectic games like Battlefield 6. This is a premium product for gamers who are hoarding some serious hardware.

Its price is in line with other premium controllers. One of CNET’s best Xbox controllers is the Wolverine V3 Pro for Xbox, which also costs $200. Similar controllers like the Scuf Instinct Pro and Vitrix Pro BFG are in the same ballpark, pricewise, but the Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC has a winning combination of competitive variables that make it feel exceptionally easy to use.

This controller is chock full of top-of-the-line technology and feels satisfying to use, but it needs to clear a high bar to feel truly worthwhile as a dedicated PC controller.

Chunky controller, satisfying feedback

When CNET’s Josh Goldman reviewed the Wolverine V3 Pro Xbox wireless controller, he called it «just about perfect.» If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it: Razer replicated many of its successes with the Wolverine V3 Pro PC controller.

The Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC is the same size as the Wolverine V3 Pro Xbox controller, which is to say it’s a bit chunkier than a standard Xbox wireless controller, but it’s surprisingly much lighter than its Xbox cousin. It weighs just 220 grams, which is appreciably lighter than the Xbox version that weighs 304 grams. And while the Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC is nowhere near as slim as a DualSense controller, it’s still much lighter than its Sony competitor — a stock DualSense controller weighs 280 grams.

Every button on this controller has a crisp, clean clickiness that scratches the same mental itch that a good mechanical keyboard might. Whether you’re gripping the trigger, pressing a button or squeezing one of the four remappable back paddles, you’ll hear incredibly satisfying auditory feedback that leaves no doubt that the controller is receiving your inputs. At one point, while I sat through a particularly long matchmaking queue, I found myself squeezing the triggers to entertain myself — the snappy pops were enough to keep me off TikTok.

The biggest difference between the V3 Pro Xbox and V3 Pro PC controllers is the variable polling rate — that dictates how often your controller is communicating with the computer. It’s like a refresh rate for your crosshair positioning.

The Wolverine V3 Pro Xbox just can’t compete here: That controller has a wired 1,000Hz polling rate for PC gameplay. The V3 Pro PC controller can be toggled for multiple polling rates, with an 8,000Hz maximum setting. This means the PC controller can report your input data eight times faster than the Xbox controller.

Every movement, turn and button press feels incredibly fluid. It’s safe to say that there’s no input lag with the Wolverine V3 PC controller, but I don’t think it matters too much for moment-to-moment first-person shooter gameplay. If you’re driving a car (or a tank) and you need to stop on a hairpin, you might appreciate Razer’s HyperPolling technology. If you’re not playing a tactical shooter like Counter-Strike or Rainbow Six: Siege, that 8,000Hz polling rate is overkill — if you’re a casual gamer crushing Call of Duty public lobbies with your pals, you’re probably not going to notice it in any of your firefights.

Better than a mouse and keyboard? That’s a little more complicated

I tested out the Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC controller on Marvel Rivals, ARC Raiders and Battlefield 6 (my current first-person shooter obsession). It’s an extremely solid choice for at least two of these games, and I likely won’t be using my DualSense controller anytime soon.

I had a great time firing magic bolts in Marvel Rivals and rolling tanks through the streets of Cairo in Battlefield 6, but this is a controller that was supposedly designed for high-level shooter gameplay. I’m saddened to report that, when it comes to dominating a first-person shooter match or competing to survive in an extraction shooter, I’d much rather stick to a mouse and keyboard.

In close-range battles, I didn’t feel like the Wolverine controller particularly helped me gain an advantage over my opponents. Mouse-and-keyboard players were often able to lock onto me quicker, even with a high look sensitivity and built-in aim assist. And I felt outmaneuvered and outgunned by mouse-and-keyboard players in the fastest-paced fights. But the controller’s precision TMR thumbsticks made it easy to quickly lock my crosshairs onto enemies and mow them down from afar with light machine guns or sniper rifles in long-range battles.

I also find it useful for games like Battlefield that have a lot of buttons to micromanage during moment-to-moment gameplay. If you want to swap your fire mode from automatic to single-fire, mount your weapon’s bipod against a flat surface or pull out an invaluable class gadget, you’ll be reaching across your keyboard to do so. The six remappable buttons on the Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC are great for these situations; I loved that I could tap fire my hulking light machine gun by gripping one of the controller’s back paddles.

The controller really shone for vehicle combat, though. I found myself gravitating toward my mouse and keyboard for infantry gunplay, but anytime I’d jump into a tank, I’d reach across my desk and grab the Wolverine again. Having pressure-sensitive triggers helps with any in-game driving: A slight squeeze lets me cautiously move forward, scanning for enemy mines, while fully pulling the trigger down helps me speed out of dangerous situations. Rebinding automatic repair jobs and weapon switches to the back paddles also helped me focus more on in-game combat, which helped me keep my armored vehicles in the fight for longer. With my DualSense controller, I’d have to awkwardly fumble with the D-Pad to activate my vehicle abilities. The Wolverine controller is the definitive way for a Battlefield tank enthusiast to play.

Outside of standard first-person shooter gameplay, I also found the Wolverine V3 PC controller to be handy for hero shooters — with some caveats. When I play Marvel Rivals, I mainly play tanks that require an extensive amount of ability usage but very little aim. Characters like Doctor Strange thrive when you can quickly string inputs together, and rebinding the controls to the Wolverine’s back paddles is great for that.

On the other hand, speedy divers that need to jump in and out of the enemy team’s backline and aim-intensive snipers feel tougher to play with the Wolverine controls, and I’d swap back to my mouse and keyboard whenever I wanted to switch off tank characters and fulfill another role for my team.

One game I don’t recommend the Wolverine V3 Pro PC for is ARC Raiders. While the remappable buttons make it easy to reach for healing items and grenades, losing out on the precision aim of a mouse and keyboard just isn’t worth it in a game where one death can set your progress back by several real-life hours. The controller lets me hold my own against killer ARC robots, but once real players join the mix, I’d rather use my tried-and-true PC hardware setup.

That’s not to say that the Wolverine controller is terrible for a tactical third-person shooter: The back paddles are a great way to quickly access any healing items, grenades and other consumables you’re carrying, which could be the difference between life and death. But when I have teammates depending on me to help them escape with their hard-earned loot, I just don’t trust the Wolverine controller to help me aim better than I can with my trusty mouse and keyboard.

For playing first-person shooters like Call of Duty or Apex Legends at breakneck speeds, the Wolverine V3 Pro 8K PC likely won’t replace your mouse and keyboard. But if your ideal competitive game centers on slower gunplay and long-range firefights, this is the most precise controller I’ve ever laid hands on (and you’ll receive a healthy heaping of help from aim assist to boot).

For the games I like to play, the Wolverine V3 Pro PC controller hasn’t become my primary gaming peripheral. Instead, it’s become a great situational swapout that complements my mouse and keyboard. As much as I like keeping it on deck for a long gaming session, $200 is a high price for a part-time controller.

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Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Dec. 17

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 17.

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

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If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

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