This could be the first real leak of Apple VR headset components

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited March 2023
A set of clear images that claim to be a pair of ribbon cables are perhaps the first look at real components for Apple's long-rumored and highly anticipated VR headset.

A render of a potential Apple headset [AppleInsider]
A render of a potential Apple headset [AppleInsider]


A quartet of photographs posted to Twitter on Monday by a leaker was published without comment, save for an emoji wearing sunglasses. If genuine, the four images depict what could be ribbon cables that form part of the Apple VR headset.

The front and back of the main ribbon cable from Monday's leak
The front and back of the main ribbon cable from Monday's leak


The cables offer relatively few clues as to how the headset would be constructed, but the shape of the component certainly indicates it is headset-related. With two large arched sections connected by a smaller bit in the middle, the main cable could be considered to be shaped like the top half of a pair of glasses.

One end of one cable has a connector to be inserted into an element, while the other has a socket for easy connection to other parts. Each end also appears to have smaller connectors as well, while strategically placed holes and loops are likely used to hold the ribbon in place within the headset enclosure.

This cable seems to be made to go above the user's eyes.
This cable seems to be made to go above the user's eyes.


A second straight cable is also pictured, seemingly with three main sections. At one end, a row of pins on a strip is visible, again facilitating the connection to other components.

The second straight cable in the leak
The second straight cable in the leak


The leaker operates from a protected account, so the tweet itself cannot be embedded. However, the leaker is known, and has a good track record on upcoming Apple products.

A close-up of one of the connectors.
A close-up of one of the connectors.


Apple is currently anticipated to introduce its VR headset in 2023, with the most likely venue being WWDC this summer.

It is believed to be made in a similar way to the Meta Quest 2, namely a "ski goggle" construction, but with considerably higher specifications. This includes automatically adjusting lenses so the user has perfect in-experience vision of the high-quality OLED screens.

The headset also could work without requiring a host device to function, One February rumor said it could be set up without needing an iPhone, communicating with iCloud directly and able to download content without external assistance from an iPhone, for example.

All this could come at a significant premium to consumers, with the belief that the price could be as high as $3,000.

Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    lordjohnwhorfinlordjohnwhorfin Posts: 854member
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    JP234williamhFileMakerFellerfred1dk49watto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 18
    ashleyashley Posts: 6member
    Hate to break it to you, but these parts are from the OG HomePod

    FileMakerFellerAlex1NJP234doozydozenbloggerblogwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 18
    samrodsamrod Posts: 60unconfirmed, member
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 18
    GrannySmith99GrannySmith99 Posts: 48member
    ashley said:
    Hate to break it to you, but these parts are from the OG HomePod


    Good spot! And the other looks to be from a Homepod Mini. This shows how easily rumour sites (and readers) can be fooled!


    Alex1Ndoozydozenwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 18
    williamhwilliamh Posts: 1,035member
    samrod said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    Generally one checks rumor sites for rumors that are interesting, right?
    lordjohnwhorfinwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 18
    jcs2305jcs2305 Posts: 1,337member
    williamh said:
    samrod said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    Generally one checks rumor sites for rumors that are interesting, right?
    What's interesting to me is where the belief that this unannounced product will somehow cost $3,000.00!! That is a very specific amount for something that can't even be verified to exist! Yikes!  Even Sony's VR2 which getting good reviews and is being considered a pretty solid offering is $549.00.

    williamlondonAlex1NStrangeDayswatto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 18
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 2,782member
    Looks like the top part of an eyeglass frame…

    with the middle shape fitting nicely on a nose bridge. 


    But… as others have noted, it appears to be manipulated to look that way from existing HomePod parts. 
    edited March 2023 Alex1Nwatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 18
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 2,782member
    jcs2305 said:
    williamh said:
    samrod said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    Generally one checks rumor sites for rumors that are interesting, right?
    What's interesting to me is where the belief that this unannounced product will somehow cost $3,000.00!! That is a very specific amount for something that can't even be verified to exist! Yikes!  Even Sony's VR2 which getting good reviews and is being considered a pretty solid offering is $549.00.

    Probably because Apple won’t be building something as low end as psvr2 which caters to a small portion of the gaming market. 

    Since the world loves to criticize apple products more than any other tech company, Apple doesn’t have the luxury of debuting an “ok” product. They have to mail it and blow people away. The screens, the form factor, the durability, the way it receives and outputs data, etc have to be far above. 

    And that costs money. 

    That said, Apple will have a chance at much more volume as well as supply chain strongholds which will allow room for a better price. 
    Alex1Nwatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 18
    sagan_studentsagan_student Posts: 185member
    jcs2305 said:
    What's interesting to me is where the belief that this unannounced product will somehow cost $3,000.00!! That is a very specific amount for something that can't even be verified to exist! Yikes!  Even Sony's VR2 which getting good reviews and is being considered a pretty solid offering is $549.00.

    It’ll be interesting to see if the Apple VR system is stand alone. If it is, then we would need to consider that the PSVR requires a PS5 which also costs 500 dollars. So to do anything with the PSVR 2 requires a 1000 dollar investment. Still a huge leap to 3000, but not as drastic as 500 to 3000.
    Alex1Nwatto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 18
    williamhwilliamh Posts: 1,035member
    jcs2305 said:
    williamh said:
    samrod said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    Generally one checks rumor sites for rumors that are interesting, right?
    What's interesting to me is where the belief that this unannounced product will somehow cost $3,000.00!! That is a very specific amount for something that can't even be verified to exist! Yikes!  Even Sony's VR2 which getting good reviews and is being considered a pretty solid offering is $549.00.

    I agree!  Before the iPad was officially announced the rumors were that it would be really expensive. It came out at like half the rumored price and we were all impressed.  Same playbook, I think.  It will be $1000-$1500 and people will be lining up for it. 
    ravnorodomwatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 18
    SpacemanGalaxySpacemanGalaxy Posts: 1member
    But… as others have noted, it appears to be manipulated to look that way from existing HomePod parts. 
    Where? I can't find a homepod part that matches the curved ribbon cable in any way. The mic strip, sure, but not the other one... that seems legit. It's also possible that Apple would use the Homepod mic strip in the XR headset too.
    edited March 2023 Alex1Nravnorodomwatto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 18
    ravnorodomravnorodom Posts: 702member
    Apple is never going to sell VR head set for $500. Sony sells their console at a lost just like ink jet printers. They make $$$ off their games. The same probably goes with Sony VR head set. 
    williamhwatto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 18
    mvmaastrichtmvmaastricht Posts: 56member
    I wonder if it would be a VR device. AR seems more logical, because that’s al Tim Cook talks about and Apple seems to be interested in. 
    And for good reason: why separate people even more from reality (and each other) by closing them off into a virtual world, while connecting them to the real world  with an AR layer, would connect people more to each other? 
    At least that (connecting people) is what Apple is communicate in every single commercial they make…
    edited March 2023 radarthekatwatto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 18
    foregoneconclusionforegoneconclusion Posts: 2,705member
    Sony sells their console at a lost just like ink jet printers. 
    That hasn't been true since the PS3/360 era. They only sell the hardware at a loss at launch. The $500 version of the PS5 became profitable in less than a year. 

    https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/ps5-turning-profit-sony/
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 18
    chutzpahchutzpah Posts: 392member
    Apple is never going to sell VR head set for $500. Sony sells their console at a lost just like ink jet printers. They make $$$ off their games. The same probably goes with Sony VR head set. 
    CLANG!  

    Myth: https://www.theverge.com/2021/8/4/22609150/sony-playstation-5-ps5-loss-profit
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 18
    SerqetrySerqetry Posts: 8member
    This really doen't look like it's for a VR headset lol.  What VR headset is shaped like a big pair of sunglasses where a cable has to run across your nose?  The shape and connectors don't make much sense, and obviously the "leaker" is trying to manipulate you by putting 2 cables together, 1 flipped upside down, to put a sunglasses-like shape in your mind.  A legit leak would have shown lenses or micro OLED screens or something.  This is just funny.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 18
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,917member
    jcs2305 said:
    williamh said:
    samrod said:
    lordjohnwhorfin said:
    That’s a fascinating insight into an upcoming product. And by that I mean WTF AI who gives a crap about a ribbon cable that may or may not be part of a product that may or may not be an unreleased Apple product. Color me unimpressed on this one.
    You know you're on a rumor site, right? 
    Generally one checks rumor sites for rumors that are interesting, right?
    What's interesting to me is where the belief that this unannounced product will somehow cost $3,000.00!! That is a very specific amount for something that can't even be verified to exist! Yikes!  Even Sony's VR2 which getting good reviews and is being considered a pretty solid offering is $549.00.

    Yeah the pricing rumors are the least likely to be correct — product leaks usually come from the supply chain, and those people have absolutely no insight on product strategy or pricing, which is very small group of humans who work in the space ship. They don’t have loose lips. 
    watto_cobra
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