Apple kicks off blitz of worldwide visionOS developer events
Apple has kicked off a series of developer events centered around helping devs build visionOS apps and content for the Apple Vision Pro, including labs and a four-week workshop.
Apple Vision Pro staff meeting with developers in Cupertino. Credit: Todd Heberlein.
The series kicked off with a small-scale event focused on Apple Vision Pro and creating software and content for visionOS. The "Envision the Future: Build Great Apps for visionOS" event was held at the Apple Developer Center in Cupertino on October 2, 2024.
The all-day workshop covered design best practices, demonstrating best-in-class apps, and how to get started with SwiftUI, ARKit, RealityKit, and Reality Composer Pro. Apple staff were on hand to demonstrate, including writing code on the spot.
Network Security Monitor developer Todd Heberlein was among the attendees, and wrote a glowing report of the event. He called it a "cozy WWDC," and noted that 170 devs attended.
"The presenters were live. Many wrote code and showed the results live," Heberlein noted. "Sometimes demos didn't work the first time."
He called the event "fantastic" and said he hopes Apple will hold more events like it.
"Because the event centered on one topic and visionOS is a very new platform, all of us developers were in the same boat," Heberlein said. "How do I do this?' Have you tried that?' Though I'm socially awkward, I enjoyed every interaction with my fellow developers."
Developers attending the Cupertino event on October 2, 2024. Credit: Todd Heberlein
More visionOS events coming soon
Apple is kicking off a series of visionOS-related events in several locations, and taking a variety of approaches in getting developers up to speed on visionOS. The company has a series of half-day in-person labs that kicked off on September 25, and will run throughout October in Toronto, Canada.
There is also a four-week online workshop in Tokyo starting October 6. In addition, requests are now open for a 30-minute one-on-one online consultations on Apple Vision Pro being held across October 14 and 15.
The company is also holding two all-day developer lab events at the Apple Development Center in Shanghai, China on October 16. A second developer lab will be held on November 13.
For developers in Korea, a two-week set of labs on visionOS development will run in Seoul from October 23 to November 7.
One-on-one 30-minute online consultations for Chinese developers will be available on October 28 and 29. North American developers will get an additional chance for one-on-one online consultations on October 29.
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Comments
apple desperately tryin to revive interest and get developers to make it compelling.
It really is up to Apple to move as many units as possible. Apple still has to put their own apps onto the VP. Pages and Numbers aren't available yet, right? Then FCP and LP need to be on it. Apple really needs to make iPhone mirroring available. I definitely think they should put Terminal.app and Xcode.app should be available.
They should update the hardware to M4 and better cameras. Take the M2 model down to something like $2800.
Headset computing has a lot of practical applications, which is why Microsoft, Meta, and Apple (among others) have jumped into that product development category. This site has already run stories about how the AVP is enhancing surgery by reducing distractions and providing surgeons with information (like BP, heart rate, etc) without them having to look away from what they are doing, just as one example. I certainly think it's the future of air traffic control (et al) as well.
Apple certainly should have started holding these kinds of labs and workshops the day after the AVP shipped, but when Apple enters an entirely new product category, it tends to keep development in-house so as to not risk leaks. So not much in the way of advance info for developers, though in hindsight some topics at WWDC '23 were pointing in that direction.
Apple and all the other tech companies can clearly see that augmented reality (in particular) and virtual reality and robotics and quantum computing are going to be growth areas in the future, so they are starting to build that future. That's how this works. Nobody who lived in the age where we all used candles indoors for evening illumination ever thought of creating an electrically-powered "everlasting" light source to replace them ... until one guy saw the future, figured out how to do it, and then built it.
The Ford Model T dealt with the cost problem while also scaling back on the sophistication and craftsmanship compared to the more expensive models for the sake of affordability. The more expensive models didn’t go away completely and plenty of intermediates models came into being by taking advantage of some of the cost reduction methods used to make the Model T affordable while delivering some but not all of the qualities from the more expensive models.
I can envision a similar pattern with VR/AR headsets. I believe all of the big players are looking to build something that closer to the Model T analogy (by 21st century standards) but they are not giving up on the higher end offerings because they still have customers who need what those models provide. The higher end models will continue to move up and the lower/middle end models will eventually move into new price points while incorporating features previously exclusive to the high end models.
It’s easy to ask the question “Why not just start off by building the Model Ts to build a wider customer base?” In my opinion starting too low would stifle consumer expectations/demand because it would be harder for potential buyers to see the fuller potential of what these products can actually deliver. It’s hard to sell a limited function product where the bar is too low and all the seller can do is make a bunch of promises for what may be coming at some point in the future. It’s harder to sell potential buyers using paper and promises than it is to have a functioning product that already delivers on a lot of those promises now, even when the current cost/price is a barrier for many potential buyers.
The Apple Vision Pro is setting the bar for AR/VR headsets where it needs for Apple to establish a path forward. Having a path in place will allow Apple to develop new models that expand the product line and deliver more affordable versions. The current Apple Vision Pro isn’t just paper and promises, it’s a real product that delivers a compelling feature set and establishes expectations for actual buyers and potential buyers. Some potential buyers are waiting for a more affordable (and lightweight) model. Because we’re talking , “more affordable” will never equate to “cheap.” Other players will go after the “cheap.”
Apple knew that going in or they'd have priced the Vision Pro cheaper than what is for some a heart stopping $3500. They knew this be have a slow-burn growth. I wish they'd started this dev program sooner just to shut up the trolls and wannabes. But they don't really matter. Trolls were thick when the iPod debuted but it was one of the best bleeding edge products I've ever owned. That and the iPhone.
I got the 5GB iPod on day 2. Trolls whined about how expensive it was but said nothing about the competition's offers of next to nothing of features, navigation and capacity in comparison for almost the same money. Trolls gonna be trolls. So what if it never sells like the two other Apple Slow Burns. It's got a solid future even if detractors don't have the vision to see it.