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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

04:21

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.

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New Speed Test Data Reveals the Nation’s Fastest Internet Service Provider

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for July 29, #779

Get hints and the answers for NYT Connections puzzle July 29, #779 — we’re all betting you’ll need mechanical help with this one.

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.


Card players, today’s NYT Connections puzzle is for you. Need more help? 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: Maybe it’s on clearance.

Green group hint: Quit hassling me!

Blue group hint: Ante up!

Purple group hint: Many soap dispensers.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Discount.

Green group: Irritate.

Blue group: Poker actions.

Purple group: Things you can pump.

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 discount. The four answers are deal, promotion, sale and special.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is irritate. The four answers are bug, nettle, ruffle and steam.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is poker actions. The four answers are call, check, fold and raise.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is things you can pump. The four answers are brakes, fist, gas and iron.

Quick tips for Connections

#1: Say the clue words out loud, pausing before and after each. That helps you hear the words in the context of a phrase. The Connections editors love to group words together that are used in similar phrasing, like ____ Up.

#2: Don’t go for the obvious grouping. These editors are smart. Once, they offered SPONGE, BOB, SQUARE and PANTS in the same puzzle. None of those words were in the same category. If you like, hit the «shuffle» button to give yourself a different perspective on the words.

#3: Break down any compound words and look for similarities. «Rushmore» was once in a puzzle where the connection was that each word started with the name of a rock band.

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Technologies

Xbox Game Pass Adds Grounded 2 and Other Games This Month

Game Pass subscribers can also play the new ’90s-inspired horror game Abiotic Factor now.

The award-winning, quirky survival game Grounded is like the game version of the classic ’80s comedy film, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. And Xbox Game Pass subscribers can get early access to that game’s sequel, Grounded 2, now. 

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, a CNET Editors’ Choice award pick, offers hundreds of games you can play on your Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One and PC or mobile device for $20 a month. A subscription gives you access to a large library of games, with new ones, including Doom: The Dark Ages, added monthly, plus other benefits such as online multiplayer and deals on non-Game Pass titles.

Here are the games Microsoft is bringing to Game Pass soon. You can also check out other games the company added to the service recently, like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4.

Grounded 2 (game preview)

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now.

You’ve been shrunk to the size of an ant — again — and you’ll have to survive the dangerous, miniature world. You’ll fight spiders and wasps, craft weapons and homes and even ride on your own insect friends to get around. You’ll unravel new mysteries along the way, but be careful. Something else is out there, and it hasn’t forgotten about you. 

Abiotic Factor

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now.

Science meets violence in this 1990s-inspired sci-fi survival game. You and up to five other players can choose your areas of expertise, build your scientist and explore a massive, top-secret underground complex filled with artifacts and supernatural horrors that could tear you limb from limb. And remember, safety, security and secrecy are of the utmost importance… usually. 

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now.

This souls-like RPG is set during the final days of the Ming Dynasty. You play as an amnesiac pirate warrior named Wuchang on a quest to uncover the truth behind a world full of chaos. You’ll fight monstrous creatures in forgotten temples and overgrown ruins, unlock new weapons and master devastating techniques in order to bring peace to yourself and others. 

RoboCop: Rogue City

Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass and Game Pass Standard subscribers can play now.

Serve the public, protect the innocent and uphold the law as the cyborg RoboCop. You’ll investigate crimes in Old Detroit before using your cyborg strength, cybernetic implants and arsenal of weapons to eradicate gangs from the area. This game is a whole new RoboCop story based on the film series, and Peter Weller, the original RoboCop himself, returns to voice the titular character.

My Friendly Neighborhood

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now.

Something’s going on with everyone’s favorite Saturday morning puppet show, and it’s up to you to figure out what in this survival horror game. You’ll solve puzzles and use tools and improvised weapons to fend off your multicolored foes. So if you have anything against Barney or Big Bird, you can take out your feelings on them with this game. 

Back to the Dawn

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now. 

This game is like if the series Prison Break took place in the Zootopia universe. You’ll play as either a fox named Thomas or a black panther named Bob as they try to navigate the prison system and escape with their lives. With multiple escape routes and over 100 quests you can complete, you can replay this game numerous times and have a different experience each time.

Wheel World

Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers can play now.

If you want to take a nice, relaxing bike ride, this game is for you. Previously known as Ghost Bike, this game puts you behind the handlebars of one of the last ghost bikes around. These bikes can traverse between the lands of the living and the dead. You can explore these lands at your leisure while you race other riders and upgrade your ride with treasures you find along the way.

Farming Simulator 25

Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass and Game Pass Standard subscribers can play on Aug. 1.

Farming isn’t always as simple as games like Stardew Valley might make it out to be, but it can still be very rewarding. If you want a taste of what goes into building and maintaining your own farm, give Farming Simulator 25 a try. You’ll grow diverse crops, raise different animals and with the weather-changing, ground-deforming atmosphere, you’ll face all kinds of challenges along the way. 

Games leaving Game Pass on July 31

While Microsoft is adding those games to Game Pass soon, it’s also removing three other games on July 31. So you still have some time to finish your campaign or complete any side quests before you have to buy these games separately.

Gigantic: Rampage Edition
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank

For more on Xbox, discover other games available on Game Pass now, read our hands-on review of the gaming service and learn which Game Pass plan is right for you. You can also check out what to know about upcoming Xbox game price hikes.

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