Testing the New Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Testing the New Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona

As of this week, Apple Vision Pro users can set up a spatial Persona, which is a new version of a Persona that's designed to make it feel like you're interfacing with other people right in the same room. We thought we'd test out the spatial Persona feature to see how it works and whether it's an improvement over the regular Persona option.


Spatial Personas have a translucent background and include the head, hands, and top part of the torso to provide a more natural feel so that it seems like the people in the conversation are in the same physical room with one another. With spatial Personas, people can move about in their real world space, and that's reflected in the virtual setting. Persona location is the same for all people on a call, so if there are five participants, each one has a different location just as they would sitting together in a room.

If you look at or point to someone on the call, the other participants can see where you are looking or pointing. Voices are also directional relative to where each person is at.

Standard Personas show only a person's face and are limited to a small tile, but spatial Personas have a much more immersive feel. Apple has been improving Personas since the Vision Pro headset launched, and while there's still an uncanny valley feel to them, the visuals are much improved and overall less creepy.

Spatial Personas can be used for watching movies and TV shows together, FaceTime and other video calls, using apps like Freeform, playing games, and more.

As of right now, spatial Personas are live in visionOS in a beta capacity, with the visionOS 1.1 update required. Spatial Personas work with up to five participants.

Related Roundup: Apple Vision Pro
Buyer's Guide: Vision Pro (Neutral)
Related Forum: Apple Vision Pro

Popular Stories

apple vision pro orange

Apple's Vision Pro Layoffs Were Broader Than First Reported

Tuesday September 1, 2026 4:18 am PDT by
Recent layoffs of Apple employees working on the Vision Pro were broader than previously thought, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Last month, Gurman said that Apple cut around 100 jobs from the Vision Products Group, with those cuts centered on the headset's gaming and immersive video teams. Gurman now says the layoffs also reached Vision Pro staff across the rest of the company, including ...
watchos 27

Apple Seeds watchOS 27, visionOS 27, and tvOS 27 Release Candidates

Wednesday September 9, 2026 12:06 pm PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of watchOS 27, visionOS 27, and tvOS 27 to developers and public beta testers. The release candidates are the final versions of the updates that will be seeded to the public as long as no final bugs are found during this last round of testing. The updates can be installed through the Software Update section in the Settings app on each...
General visionOS watchOS and tvOS Betas Feature Redux

Apple Releases First watchOS 27.2, tvOS 27.2 and visionOS 27.2 Betas

Wednesday September 16, 2026 10:12 am PDT by
Alongside new betas of iOS 27.2, iPadOS 27.2, and macOS Golden Gate 27.2, Apple has released the first betas of watchOS 27.2, tvOS 27.2, and visionOS 27.2. The betas come two days after the 27.0 software updates were released. Registered developers can download the betas through the Settings app on each device. Two new Apple Intelligence features are coming to the Apple Watch Series 12...

Top Rated Comments

madmin Avatar
32 months ago
I aint afraid of no ghost
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
32 months ago

Exactly... it's another barrier, layer, that nobody wants.
There was a time when no one wanted mice.

There was a time when no one wanted virtual keyboards on cellular phones.

Those folks likely never got to the point of wanting one or the other, but the market grew to support the millions and billions that did want those.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
32 months ago
Ok, Apple, I'll be the one to say it:

Would you mind doing something useful with this hardware?
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
32 months ago
I own and love my AVP. I use mine 4 to 6 hours per day. These continual improvements and capabilities make it even more fun. A hat tip to Apple for striving for innovation across the AVP platform.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
32 months ago

Features like this have existed for years on other VR/AR headsets, and it's the same issue here.

These types of interactions are meant to be in person. If you are trying to have these types of meetings and/or interactions, I would re-think just meeting in person.

FaceTime is simply that, seeing someone. Personas are not even that, it's just a hologram of you and makes the interaction feel even less personal than just a normal (real) video call.
Today, I was meeting with people in London, Rome, Oslo, Chicago, Seattle, and Bangalore. tonight I'll be meeting with Sydney, Chicago, and Dallas. How do you propose that I meet with them in person? I think you are over valuing the in person experience on a day to day basis. Sure that is value in meeting people, but it doesn't need to be for every meeting and frankly there are coworkers and customers that I expect I will never meet in person.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
32 months ago
I felt a great disturbance in Force Touch, as if millions of emoji suddenly got typed out in terror and were suddenly deleted. I fear iOS 18 Beta has happened.



Attachment Image
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Latest Stories
iFixit Shares iPhone 18 Pro Teardown With Inside Look at New Features
iFixit Shares iPhone 18 Pro Teardown With Inside Look at New Features
4 hours ago
Apple Fitness+ Layoffs Reported Ahead of Potential 'Major' Changes
Apple Fitness+ Layoffs Reported Ahead of Potential 'Major' Changes
4 hours ago
A Shorter Apple Pencil Was Supposed to Launch Alongside iPhone Duo
A Shorter Apple Pencil Was Supposed to Launch Alongside iPhone Duo
4 hours ago
Siri AI Settlement Website Now Live: Apple to Pay Some iPhone Owners
Siri AI Settlement Website Now Live: Apple to Pay Some iPhone Owners
5 hours ago
M6 Pro Chip Result on Geekbench is Likely Fake
M6 Pro Chip Result on Geekbench is Likely Fake
2 days ago
Apple Watch Ultra 4 Sees First Discount After Launch, Now $779.99 on Amazon
Apple Watch Ultra 4 Sees First Discount After Launch, Now $779.99 on Amazon
2 days ago
Top Stories: iOS 27 and macOS Golden Gate Out Now, Siri AI Waitlist, and More
Top Stories: iOS 27 and macOS Golden Gate Out Now, Siri AI Waitlist, and More
2 days ago
Apple Exec Says 'Hold Us Accountable' on iPhone Duo Crease
Apple Exec Says 'Hold Us Accountable' on iPhone Duo Crease
2 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro Max Requires 'Prepare to Ship' Battery Drain Before Shipping
iPhone 18 Pro Max Requires 'Prepare to Ship' Battery Drain Before Shipping
2 days ago
Hands-On With the Apple Watch Series 12
Hands-On With the Apple Watch Series 12
2 days ago
M5 Ultra and M6 Chip Benchmark Results Reveal Graphics Performance
M5 Ultra and M6 Chip Benchmark Results Reveal Graphics Performance
2 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro Max in U.S. Has Qualcomm's Snapdragon X80 Modem
iPhone 18 Pro Max in U.S. Has Qualcomm's Snapdragon X80 Modem
3 days ago
Apple Releases Xcode 27.1 Beta With iPhone Duo Support
Apple Releases Xcode 27.1 Beta With iPhone Duo Support
3 days ago
Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Ultra 4 Buyer's Guide
Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Ultra 4 Buyer's Guide
3 days ago
MacRumors Giveaway: Win an iPhone Duo From iMazing
MacRumors Giveaway: Win an iPhone Duo From iMazing
3 days ago
'Shop Different': Apple Retail Pioneer Ron Johnson Shares the Inside Story
'Shop Different': Apple Retail Pioneer Ron Johnson Shares the Inside Story
3 days ago
Apple Teams Up With ROSÉ for iPhone 18 Pro Camera Ad
Apple Teams Up With ROSÉ for iPhone 18 Pro Camera Ad
3 days ago
The MacRumors Show: Is the iPhone Duo Actually Worth It?
The MacRumors Show: Is the iPhone Duo Actually Worth It?
3 days ago
Apple Designers Explain the Thinking Behind iPhone Duo
Apple Designers Explain the Thinking Behind iPhone Duo
3 days ago
Are iPhone 17 Pro Cases Compatible With iPhone 18 Pro? Here's What Apple Says
Are iPhone 17 Pro Cases Compatible With iPhone 18 Pro? Here's What Apple Says
3 days ago
Apple Supplier Subsidiary Considering U.S. Flash Memory Factory
Apple Supplier Subsidiary Considering U.S. Flash Memory Factory
3 days ago
Apple Launch Day Deals on iPhone 18 Pro, AirPods 5, Apple Watch Series 12, and More
Apple Launch Day Deals on iPhone 18 Pro, AirPods 5, Apple Watch Series 12, and More
3 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro Teardown Reveals How Apple Shrunk the Dynamic Island
iPhone 18 Pro Teardown Reveals How Apple Shrunk the Dynamic Island
3 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro Demand Stronger Than Expected
iPhone 18 Pro Demand Stronger Than Expected
3 days ago
Fan Site Lets You 'Design the Next iPhone'
Fan Site Lets You 'Design the Next iPhone'
3 days ago
Apple Stores Have a New 'Hello' Easter Egg, Here's Why
Apple Stores Have a New 'Hello' Easter Egg, Here's Why
3 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro: The New Features You Should Try First
iPhone 18 Pro: The New Features You Should Try First
3 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro: Using the New Variable Aperture Lens
iPhone 18 Pro: Using the New Variable Aperture Lens
3 days ago
Forgot to Pre-Order iPhone 18 Pro? Apple Store Pickup Available Today at Most Locations
Forgot to Pre-Order iPhone 18 Pro? Apple Store Pickup Available Today at Most Locations
3 days ago
Apple CEO John Ternus Teases iPhone 18 Pro Launch Day
Apple CEO John Ternus Teases iPhone 18 Pro Launch Day
3 days ago