chasm
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HomePod mini ditches space gray in favor of new midnight color
I’m amused by the fact that the key frame in Andrew’s video shows him holding NOT a HomePod mini. If you watch the video (it’s very short, maybe a minute), you can see he was just holding up a full-size HomePod briefly for a size comparison, and YT opted to make that the “preview” frame. Doh!Actual HomePods mini are on display in the actual video.
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Apple may be already lining up suppliers for a second Apple Vision headset
I think a lot of people like yourself woefully misunderstand the Apple Vision Pro. Apple is well aware of the price tag in the US and now other countries.Pema said:$1100 AUD doesn't blow a black hole in my budget, $7000 AUD does.
.This is not a "My Fisher-Price First Mixed Reality Headset" product in any way, shape, or form. Apple will happily sell you one, but it's not marketed nor aimed at people looking to replace their Mac, although for some people it could -- and you have doubtless spent more money on your Mac over time. I understand that a number of US businesses have invested in them for various industrial jobs and/or training. Nothing focuses you like wearing a helmet!As the story above plainly states, Apple is working on a cheaper and lower-quality headset for consumers. They wouldn't do that if the public at large took zero interest in it.Every time I've been in an Apple Store of late, there is a group of people waiting to do the demo of it. Will most of those people buy one? Probably not -- but they're getting a look at one future of computing for free, so why not?This has also probably done well with wealthy technophiles, to whom even $10,000US represents the interest they earned on their holdings that week. Or just regular people who bought a bunch of AAPL back when it was cheap and have benefitted from that wise decision (I was once once of them, but that was a loooong time ago).
The Meta Quest 3 is a smart and sensible way for working-class people to experiment with VR/AR, but it's kind of a toy. The Apple Vision Pro isn't, and wasn't intended to be -- it's more of a proof-of-concept of one future of computing. To put this another way, I'd wager that your first car wasn't a $150K Maserati.
I appreciate your enthusiasm for wanting to investigate the product, but a demo at the Apple Store (when that is available to you) should show you the clear difference between the Meta Quest 3 and the AVP. Both have done what they were aiming to do. FWIW, I almost never buy the first edition of any electronic gear because I know in a year or two there will be a better version, and the first version will go on remainder sale.
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Apple Vision Pro finally on sale outside the US
I'm aware, but wages for most working people have been stagnant for a decade or more, while inflation and general cost of living has risen, meaning that folks we might have once called "middle class" or "upwardly mobile" are now "the working poor."StrangeDays said:
idle rich? You do realize AVP is half the price of the original Macintosh when corrected for inflation. Were Macintosh users also the idle rich?chasm said:There are more of the idle rich around than perhaps you realize. I mean, two of those 25 you refer to are standing looking at each in that picture in that one store!
An AVP is a luxury item for most working people these days. I personally don't consider it a "toy," but it's not an accident that it has that sort of reputation among those whose income is solely derived from their labours.
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EU hits back at Apple withholding Apple Intelligence from the region
The problem here appears to be less about the DMA and more about a spokesperson for it who is more than happy to go off half-cocked based on incomplete information.A **professional** would have said simply that the EU maintains its communications with Apple and will be discussing any changes with them, at least until both entities have, in fact, had a chance to get together and discuss recent announcements and what Apple’s concerns are regarding the EU’s rules.Vestager seems to be the main problem here. Maybe replace her with someone more diplomatic and less dictatorial.
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An Apple Vision Pro successor may need to be tethered to an iPhone or Mac
I think you may be misunderstanding the proposition. Not having to have a full computer in the "Apple Vision" (non-pro) will allow that headset to be dramatically cheaper than the Vision Pro, right? And the sort of people who tend to buy the Vision Pro are, at the very least, people who spend a fair amount of time alone (since the whole idea of a headset is to be immersed). They might have more "disposable income" than a family of six, on average.*jwdawso said:I think this rumor is "Unlikely" at best. I know it's from our Tech Lord Mark Gurman, but this goes against Apple's nature. There could be a high speed tether to support development work, particularly for prototypes that are testing graphics. There's a slower tether for supporting general development on the current Vision Pro. It also seems to me that tethering does not lower the price to the consumer - they would have to have a current iPhone or Mac also, which would raise the price to a similar level as the Vision Pro. So I would say "Unlikely".*Both the Vision Pro and future "Apple Vision" are rich people's toys IMO at present, but I see their growing potential.You are right that you would likely need a current or future iPhone to handle this work, but again this thing isn't coming out for at least a year. Right now, today, you will need at least an iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max for the full Apple Intelligence experience. Clearly, Apple is expecting a big chunk of the user base to upgrade their iPhones in the next year or two for that feature alone. I certainly will be doing so, but my iPhone 12 is already "old" in iPhone terms and my secondary XR is positively ancient!I would guess that most iPhone 13 and 14 owners are on a two-year contract with their provider, so they will also be upgrading around the time this Apple Vision comes out, or shortly thereafter. Remember also that the regular iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will be getting the chip that is in the 15 Pro and Pro Max now, if Apple follows its usual practices. So those models are will likely be able to support Apple Intelligence, and perhaps this "Apple Vision" model. The more powerful Neural Engine in the 15 Pro and Pro Max and future iPhones are timed for the upgrading cycle to happen right around when these new and more powerful goodies are scheduled to be available.It's almost like Apple planned it that way!
