MacRumors

Apple today added the Thunderbolt Display and the first-generation iPad Air to its obsolete products list, meaning the devices are no longer eligible for repairs or other hardware service at Apple Stores or Apple Authorized Service Providers.

Apple classifies a product as obsolete once more than seven years have passed since the company stopped distributing it for sale. Apple discontinues all hardware service for obsolete products, and service providers cannot order parts for obsolete products. Both the Thunderbolt Display and the original iPad Air were discontinued in 2016.

Introduced in 2011, the Thunderbolt Display featured a 27-inch screen with 1440p resolution, a 720p camera, three USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 800 port, a Gigabit Ethernet port, and a Thunderbolt port. Priced at $999, the Thunderbolt Display was the last Apple-branded monitor until the Pro Display XDR launched in 2019.

The original iPad Air launched in 2013 and featured a 9.7-inch display and the A7 chip. It was advertised as being 20% thinner and 28% lighter, and having 43% narrower display bezels, compared to the previous-generation iPad.

Apple also classified the fifth-generation entry-level iPad as vintage. Apple considers a product to be vintage once more than five years have passed since the company stopped distributing it for sale, but repairs and service may still be available until the product becomes obsolete in two more years, subject to parts availability.

Apple is overtly teasing the start of "a new era" and the ability to "code new worlds" at WWDC this year, building anticipation around the widely expected announcement of its mixed-reality headset.

A tweet shared by Apple earlier today made the "new era" remark, seemingly leaning into the high expectations surrounding next week's WWDC keynote. The launch of a major new device and operating system, something that has not occurred since the debut of the original Apple Watch in September 2014, would certainly seem to justify the start of a new era for the company.

In a similar move, Apple yesterday published a blog post on the Apple Developer website titled "Code new worlds." The language may hint at developers' ability to create immersive augmented-reality and virtual-reality experiences for Apple's headset.

Neither the "new era" nor "code new worlds" phrases had been used until now, in what seems to be a ramping up of rhetoric around the upcoming keynote event. Apple CEO Tim Cook referred to the "beginning of a new era for iPhone" upon announcing the ‌iPhone‌ 12 in October 2020, but the company seldom makes such bold statements ahead of events, especially for WWDC. Earlier today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that he expects the keynote "to be one of Apple's longest ever and easily exceed two hours."

Apple will focus on three main topics during its WWDC keynote next week, including "several new Macs," composing one of the company's longest-ever events, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said.

In a tweet shared earlier today, Gurman said that this year's WWDC keynote will focus on the announcement of "several" new Mac models, Apple's mixed-reality headset, and a range of significant OS updates. An all-new 15-inch MacBook Air model is the only Mac firmly pinned down by rumors for announcement at the event, so it is unclear what other Mac models could be on the table.

Last week, Gurman reported that the Mac Studio, 13-inch M2 ‌MacBook Air‌, and 13-inch ‌‌M2‌‌ MacBook Pro, will become eligible for trade-in on the day of the event, potentially hinting that a refresh for at least one of those machines could be on the way. 13-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ and ‌MacBook Pro‌ models with the M3 chip are rumored to be in development, but the first M3 Macs are not expected to launch until toward the end of the year.

Apple introduced the ‌Mac Studio‌ in May 2022, offering configurations with the M1 Max and M1 Ultra chips. Despite the launch of a range of Macs with the ‌M2‌, ‌M2‌ Pro, and ‌M2‌ Max chips, Apple has not yet refreshed the ‌Mac Studio‌. Gurman believes that two new Mac Studio models are in the works, but is unsure of when they will launch.

He has previously cast doubt over the possibility of update being announced at WWDC, suggesting that Apple is more likely to wait until the M3 generation to update the ‌Mac Studio‌ as to avoid cannibalizing the Apple silicon Mac Pro. Even so, updated ‌Mac Studio‌ models with ‌M2‌ Max and ‌M2‌ Ultra chip options are certainly not out of the question for WWDC this year.

The Apple silicon ‌Mac Pro‌ is also a possibility, but speaking on the The MacRumors Show podcast earlier this year, Gurman explained that while he still expects the new ‌Mac Pro‌ to launch this year, it is unlikely to emerge at WWDC.

Due to the sheer quantity of what Apple is expected to announce at WWDC, Gurman expects the keynote "to be one of Apple's longest ever and easily exceed two hours." Last year's WWDC keynote event was just under one hour and 50 minutes long. The event contained the announcement of iOS 16, iPadOS 16, macOS 13 Ventura, watchOS 9, the ‌M2‌ chip, a refreshed 13-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌, and the redesigned ‌MacBook Air‌.

Apple is continuing to prepare for the 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference, with the official hashflag for the event rolling out as of today. The #WWDC23 hashtag on Twitter now features a custom-designed Apple logo that matches the design that Apple is using this year.

For those unfamiliar with hashflags, they are custom, paid icons that appear next to specific hashtags on the Twitter social network. You can see the hashflag when you use the #WWDC23 hashtag.

This year's hashflag is an Apple logo in shades of blue, purple, pink, and black. Apple has used custom hashflags since 2020 to boost event visibility and build hype on Twitter.

WWDC 2023 is set to begin on Monday, June 5.

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference is kicking off next Monday, and starting later this week, developers who have been invited to attend in person will be catching flights to get to Cupertino, California.

Developer Ryan Jones today announced the launch of a useful flight tracking tool for those who are attending, which is available through the Flighty flight tracking app. WWDC attendees can add their flights to the Flighty WWDC 2023 website to see other developers who will be flying in from the same airports and who may be on the same flights.

Dates are not shared, nor are flight numbers and airlines, but developers can add their names to see who else is coming to and from their local airports. The site also provides a look at interesting aggregate data, such as the number of countries developers are flying from, which airports, the distance traveled, and more.

A map view shows all of the incoming flights at a glance, and clicking into a location displays the developers coming from that area. The tool is free to use, and available through the Flighty website.

Flighty is a robust flight tracking app that offers up all of the flight information that you need ahead of a trip. It provides quick notifications of any changes, alerts you to possible delays based on late inbound planes, and provides at-a-glance information on departure/arrival times, gate numbers, baggage claim locations, and more.

Flighty is free to download, but unlocking all features requires a Pro subscription. [Direct Link]

Web Roulette is a newly launched lightweight app from Impending, the app designers behind popular game Heads Up and list-making app Clear. Web Roulette is a redesigned browser app that lets you swipe through your favorite sites one after another, so you can better keep up with new content.

The Web Roulette interface is populated with a list of popular websites in categories like technology, pop culture, news, gaming, lifestyle, social, shopping, sports, fashion, and business, so you can download it, open it up, select your favorites, and start swiping, but it works best with customization.

You're meant to choose the sites that you regularly visit throughout the day, and if they're not in the provided list, you can add them. Once you've loaded the app up, it shifts over to a focused, single-site browser experience. It loads the first webpage in the list, and you can swipe left or right to access additional webpages.

The idea is to swipe through during the day to see new content on the pages that you like to refresh. For sites like MacRumors, for example, you'll see an up-to-date version of the front page each time you get to it through your swiping routine. You can swipe left or right through each webpage that you've added without needing to go to Safari and type in the website or change tabs each time you want to get new content.

The app works just like any other web browser, so you can tap into stories and use another swipe to get back to where you were.

As a little bonus, as you swipe through the app, you'll earn shakes. Shaking the iPhone will bring up a random, interesting website that may catch your attention and give you something fresh to read. Swipes and shakes are precached, cutting down on load times.

Swiping on the ‌iPhone‌ is a natural gesture, and browsing websites this way is quick and convenient, plus there is a satisfying haptic mechanic when you shake. Web Roulette is free to use, and can be downloaded from the App Store. [Direct Link]

The AR/VR headset that Apple plans to introduce at the Worldwide Developers Conference next week has long been rumored to feature 4K micro OLED displays with an 8K total resolution, but notable display analyst Ross Young today shared some additional specifications that give some insight into how the headset will work.

Each of the two displays will measure in at 1.41 inches diagonally, with Apple aiming for over 5000 nits of brightness and 4,000 pixels per inch. Unfortunately, AR/VR display specs used in headsets from competitors like Sony and Meta aren't generally advertised beyond resolution and pixels per inch, so it's difficult to make a direct comparison, but the information from Young does provide some context.

With ~5000 nits brightness or more, the AR/VR headset from Apple would support HDR or high dynamic range content, which is not typical for current VR headsets on the market. The Meta Quest 2, for example, maxes out around 100 nits of brightness and it does not offer HDR, and the HoloLens 2 offers 500 nits brightness. Sony's PSVR 2 headset has around 265 nits of brightness, and it does have an advertised HDR feature when connected to an HDR display.

According to Young, the 5000 nits likely refers to peak brightness, which means that it won't blind users, but will instead provide superior contrast, brighter colors, and better highlights than other headsets that are available today. For SDR displays, peak brightness is often a reference to how well a display will perform in rooms with bright lighting as it is akin to maximum brightness, but for HDR displays, it's a metric of how well a display depicts color and contrast.

High-end TVs offer somewhere around 2,000 to 5,000 nits, for comparison. Samsung, for example, has a 98-inch TV that is able to reach 5,000 nits, along with Neo QLED TVs that offer 4,000 nits peak brightness. Samsung advertises these TVs as having "stunning, accurate color detail and an extraordinary range of contrast, creating a beyond-life-like experience."

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg in 2022 showed off a "Starbursts" VR headset prototype able to hit 20,000 nits of brightness, but it was enormous, not wearable on the head, and not technology that Meta is able to implement as of yet.

If Apple hits that 5000+ nits brightness target, its headset will offer a display experience that competitors are unable to match, and it will also set the stage for future AR glasses. Augmented reality glasses need high brightness to mitigate the light from the sun and other light sources. At lower brightness levels, the AR content that overlays the real world view can be washed out.

Magic Leap 2, one of the more well-known augmented reality headsets, features brightness ranging from 20 nits to 2000 nits.

The 8K resolution offered by Apple's AR/VR headset will be superior to headsets from Meta and other companies, including Meta's highest-end Quest Pro 2. The Quest Pro 2 has a resolution of 1800 x 1920 pixels per eye and around 1200 pixels per inch as Meta is using LCD display technology.

The high-end displays that Apple has created for the AR/VR headset are rumored to be the most expensive component and a major contributor to the expected ~$3,000 price. At $3,000, Apple's AR/VR headset will be one of the more expensive virtual reality headsets on the market, though it will be competitive in price with AR-based products like the Magic Leap 2 and the HoloLens 2.

More information on what to expect from Apple's AR/VR headset can be found in our dedicated roundup.

Apple today released watchOS 9.5.1, a minor bug fix update designed for the Apple Watch. watchOS 9.5.1 is a free download that comes two weeks after the launch of watchOS 9.5.

watchOS 9.5.1 can be downloaded for free through the Apple Watch app on the iPhone by opening it up and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery, it needs to be placed on a charger, and it needs to be in range of the ‌‌‌‌‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌‌‌‌‌.

According to Apple's release notes for the update, it includes "improvements and bug fixes" for the Apple Watch, with no details on which bugs have been addressed.

Ahead of WWDC, Apple is getting developers and fans hyped for the event, today highlighting some of the ways that the WWDC keynote can be watched. WWDC can be viewed through Apple.com on the Events page or through the Apple Developer app.

Apple also plans to offer the live stream through the Apple TV app and on YouTube, with the YouTube stream live as of this morning.

Apple says that those who use the Apple Developer app to watch the keynote can use the SharePlay feature to view it alongside friends, making it easy to chat about the various announcements.

Apple is now allowing eligible developers to sign up for WWDC activities, including chats with Apple engineers, designers, and other Apple experts. There are numerous Q&A sessions, icebreakers, and Meet the Presenter activities, which are hosted through Slack.

Some of the available Activity topics include Augmented Reality, Design, App Store, Health and Fitness, Developer Tools, Maps and Location, Privacy and Security, System Services, and more.

Apple is also offering Sessions and Labs, which will be available after the keynote event.

This year's WWDC keynote is expected to focus on Apple's AR/VR headset, which is rumored to be making its debut at the event. Apple's WWDC tagline is "Code new worlds," which appears to be an obvious hint about the new xrOS platform that will run on the headset.

Apple planned to offer the MagSafe Charger in eight different color options around 2020, the prototype collector known as "Kosutami" claims.

MacRumors is told that Apple prototyped the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger in Space Gray, Starlight, Green, Pink, Purple, Yellow, Blue, and (PRODUCT)RED color options. The Yellow, Blue, and (PRODUCT)RED variants, in particular, were apparently highly saturated, deep shades.

The rubberized disc on the surface that makes contact with the iPhone and the cable was paired in a contrasting color to the shade of the aluminum exterior. For example, the Space Gray ‌MagSafe‌ Charger was matched with a black disc and cable. The prototypes seem to originate from the period in which the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineups were being developed, explaining why many of the planned shades correlate with the color options offered on those devices.

To date, the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger for ‌iPhone‌ has only been available in Silver. Upon releasing the M2 MacBook Air, Apple has offered the ‌MagSafe‌ 3 charger for Mac in Silver, Space Gray, Midnight, and Starlight, so additional color options for ‌MagSafe‌ for ‌iPhone‌ may not be out of the question in the future.

Kosutami first shared news of the plans for a range of ‌MagSafe‌ Charger color options last week, adding that Apple similarly prototyped multiple color options for the unreleased "Magic Charger" accessory.

Apple today launched Apple Music Classical for Android on the Google Play Store, expanding the app beyond the iPhone for the first time (via 9to5Mac).

Much like ‌Apple Music‌ for Android, the ‌Apple Music‌ Classical app for Android largely mirrors the design of its iOS counterpart. Notably, the ‌Apple Music‌ Classical app for Android comes before Apple has made the app available for the iPad or Mac.

In 2021, Apple announced that it had purchased the classical music streaming service Primephonic and would be folding it into ‌Apple Music‌ via a new app dedicated to the genre. Apple launched ‌Apple Music‌ Classical in March, offering a standalone experience for discovering and listening to classical music.

The ‌Apple Music‌ Classical app offers ‌Apple Music‌ subscribers access to over five million classical music tracks, including new high-quality releases, in addition to hundreds of curated playlists, thousands of exclusive albums, and other features like composer bios and deep dives on key works.

The app offers a simpler interface for interacting with classical music specifically. Unlike the existing ‌Apple Music‌ app, ‌Apple Music‌ Classical allows users to search by composer, work, conductor, catalog number, and more. Users can get more detailed information from editorial notes and descriptions.

Apple commissioned high-resolution digital portraits of famous composers like Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin, and Johann Sebastian Bach for the app, using color palettes and artistic references from the relevant classical period, with more unique artwork to be added over time. Apple works with classical music artists and institutions to offer exclusive content and recordings.

The ‌Apple Music‌ Classical app for Android is available now on the Google Play Store. Users must have an ‌Apple Music‌ or Apple One subscription to use the app.

Just days ahead of WWDC, where Apple is expected to unveil its long-rumored AR/VR headset, developer Steve Troughton-Smith has managed to trick App Store Connect into showing the headset's rumored "xrOS" operating system name.

After analyzing some of Apple's open source code, Troughton-Smith attempted to submit an app crafted for the headset. App Store Connect rejected the app, but recognized it as an xrOS binary in an error message, despite Troughton-Smith never mentioning xrOS. This provides yet another indication that xrOS will be the public-facing name of the headset's operating system, as Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously reported.

The error message, which does not capitalize xrOS or iOS:

Incorrect Platform. You included the xros arm64 executable in your ios bundle. Only ios executables can be included.

Apple is likely behind a few shell companies that have applied for trademarks for various other names, including xrProOS, realityproOS, and realOS, but it appears increasingly likely that xrOS will prevail as the name of the headset's operating system.

Earlier this week, we published a guide that provides an overview of what to expect from xrOS based on rumors. Apple is expected to preview xrOS alongside iOS 17, iPadOS 17, macOS 14, watchOS 10, and tvOS 17 during its WWDC keynote on June 5. The headset itself is also expected to be unveiled, providing a first look at the hardware.

The iPhone 16 Pro models will feature a taller aspect ratio of 19.6:9, a change that will trickle down to the standard iPhone 17 models the following year, new forecasts from display analyst Ross Young claim.

The iPhone 14 lineup has an aspect ratio of 19.5:9, a specification that is expected to remain the same across this year's iPhone 15 lineup. The change with the ‌iPhone 16 Pro‌ models means that the devices should get slightly taller, rather than wider. While the ‌iPhone 16 Pro‌ models have been widely rumored to feature larger screens for some time, the aspect ratio of the devices was unclear until now.

Young also provided exact display sizes for the ‌iPhone 16 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 16 Pro‌ Max. The devices are expected to increase from 6.12- and 6.69-inches to 6.27- and 6.86-inches, respectively. This represents a display size increase of 2.5% on both devices.

With the ‌iPhone 17‌ and ‌iPhone 17‌ Plus in 2025, Apple will apparently bring the larger 6.27- and 6.86-inch display sizes to its two standard ‌iPhone‌ models. As Young has previously reported, these devices are also expected to gain LTPO panels to support ProMotion for variable refresh rates up to 120Hz. This means that the standard ‌iPhone 17‌ models look set to receive a substantial display upgrade, with larger sizes and LPTO for ProMotion.

In addition, Young reaffirmed his previous statement that the iPhone 17 Pro models will be the first to feature under-display Face ID technology, sitting alongside a hole-shaped cutout for the front-facing camera.

Amazon today has a few exclusive discounts on the 2022 12.9-inch iPad Pro, with up to $99 off select tablets and a few all-time low prices. Most of the iPad Pros can be delivered between June 1 and 5 for United States residents.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Every deal shared below requires you to add the tablets to your Amazon cart in order to get the discounted price. Once in your cart, an automatic coupon worth around $50 will be applied to your order and you'll see the sale price.

Starting with the 128GB Wi-Fi 12.9-inch iPad Pro, this model is on sale for $999.99, down from $1,099.00. It's available in both Silver and Space Gray, and this is an all-time low price.

Secondly, the 256GB Wi-Fi 12.9-inch iPad Pro has hit $1,099.99 on Amazon, down from $1,199.00. It's also available in Silver and Space Gray and this one is a second-best price.

Amazon also has the 512GB Wi-Fi 12.9-inch iPad Pro on sale, available for $1,299.99, down from $1,399.00. Colors on sale include both Silver and Space Gray.

Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.

Ahead of Apple's keynote event at WWDC on Monday, June 5, the company's annual "AR experience" easter egg is now available.

Apple's imagery for WWDC 2023 has a bubble-like theme that emphasizes the colors of iridescent thin film interference. The AR experience shows an Apple logo-shaped bubble that animates clockwise with the date of June 5, 2023 in the center.

To view the AR experience, open up the Apple Events website on an iPhone or iPad and tap on "View the AR experience." From there, you can scan the area around you to see the logo in real time, or view it in "Object" mode to get a clearer picture of what it looks like without having to navigate your physical environment.

Apple's event will begin at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time on Monday, June 5. In addition to being streamed on YouTube, the event can be watched through the events webpage and in the Apple TV app. If you're unable to watch, you can tune in to the MacRumors live blog on the site or follow along with our MacRumorsLive Twitter account.

Apple prototyped versions of the AirPods' charging case in five different color options to match the iPhone 7, according to the prototype collector known as "Kosutami."

Images shared with MacRumors and posted on Twitter earlier today show a first-generation AirPods casing in a pink colorway. It continues to have a polished, glossy finish like the final release version in white. The inside of the casing, as well as the AirPods earbuds themselves, continue to be white.

The prototypes date back to the period in which Apple was developing the ‌iPhone‌ 7. The company apparently developed AirPods prototypes in Black, Blonde, Pink, and Red to match the ‌iPhone‌ 7's color options, MacRumors was told. The ‌iPhone‌ 7 was available in Jet Black, Black, Gold, Rose Gold, and (PRODUCT)RED. Since the AirPods' casing is made of polycarbonate rather than anodized aluminum like the ‌iPhone‌, Apple seems to have switched to names like "Blonde" and "Pink," instead of "Gold" and "Rose Gold," to denote the different materials and finishes.

Apple also apparently developed a purple AirPods prototype to match an unreleased version of the ‌iPhone‌ 7 in purple. Purple was one of the color options rumored for the ‌iPhone‌ 7 around 2016, with a range of leaked images showing a purple casing for the device first appearing in May of that year.

Apple is said to have only canceled the AirPods color options at the design validation testing (DVT) or production validation testing (PVT) stage, suggesting that the decision was made at a fairly late stage. Kosutami has previously provided insights about Apple prototypes such as the "Magic Charger" in the past.

Some users have sought after AirPods in different color options for several years. While Apple was seemingly only ever considering offering the charging case in different color ways, it is interesting to know that the company got as far as prototyping five distinct color options for the device to match the ‌iPhone‌. Today, the AirPods Max are the only AirPods to have been offered in different color options.

The founder of Hello Games, the makers of popular action-adventure survival game "No Man's Sky," yesterday tweeted two apple emojis, sparking speculation that the studio is teasing an announcement for Apple platforms at WWDC.

Hello Games founder Sean Murray has been known to tease upcoming announcements via cryptic emojis in the past. At WWDC last year, Apple announced that No Man's Sky would be available for the iPad and Mac would by the end of 2022. Hello Games missed that deadline and the game has yet to release for Apple devices, meaning that the two emoji teasers could indicate that the launch of No Man's Sky for the ‌iPad‌ and Mac is now imminent.

Given widespread anticipation about Apple's expected announcement of a mixed-reality headset at WWDC in less than a week, there is now speculation that Hello Games could be working on a game for the new device. No Man's Sky is already available on multiple VR platforms, including on PC and PlayStation VR. When the game was demoed at WWDC last year, it was played on a Mac with the M1 chip. Since Apple's headset is rumored to feature at least one chip that is based on the M2 chip in addition to a dedicated image signal processor, it should be more than capable of running the game.

Hello Games has also worked with Apple to publish games on Apple Arcade. Given Apple's discussions with Hello Games in recent years, No Man's Sky being among the initial wave of games available on Apple's mixed-reality headset is not out of the question.

While some rumors have suggested Apple's headset is not particularly focused on gaming, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has repeatedly referred to gaming, media, and communication as the three main priorities of the device. Apple has reportedly been working with a number of gaming developers to help them update their existing content for mixed reality and the company is expected to provide a robust set of developer tools for creating experiences for the headset.

The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple's annual developer and software-oriented conference, is now just a few days away. As with previous years, Apple is expected to introduce major updates to all of its operating systems, but unique to WWDC 2023, Apple is also very likely to unveil xrOS, the software that will run its much-rumored AR/VR mixed-reality headset. Here's everything we're expecting from it.

xrOS: What's in a Name?

Apple has not publicly acknowledged the existence of its headset, but internal Apple sources have confirmed that the operating system will be called xrOS, and Apple has used hidden shell companies to trademark the name in various countries.

‌xrOS‌ is meant to stand for "extended reality," hinting at the augmented and virtual reality functions at the heart of the head-mounted device. The backend capitalization also conforms to the naming conventions Apple has adopted for all of the operating systems in its ecosystem.

According to reporting by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple sees the headset as a device for gaming, watching streaming video, video conferencing, health and fitness, and interfacing with other people. Therefore ‌xrOS‌ will be focused on providing the best possible environment for delivering that content.

xrOS User Interface

‌xrOS‌ is believed to have an iOS-like interface that will be familiar to iPhone and iPad users, but presented to them and interacted with in an entirely new way.

We are expecting a dedicated Home Screen containing apps and customizable widgets, all of which can be rearranged, and all viewed on dual high-resolution 4K micro OLED displays with up to 3,000 pixels per inch for a rich, realistic, and immersive viewing experience.

Both of the user's hands and eyes will be tracked by more than a dozen optical cameras, and the wearer is expected to be able to look at an on-screen item to select it, and use a hand gesture like a pinch to activate the item on the screen.

The ‌xrOS‌ software could even potentially project AR app interface elements onto actual objects in the real world for a mixed-reality overlay kind of effect.

Apple is also said to be working on an in-air typing feature that is expected to be a bit rudimentary at launch, with Apple to make notable improvements over time.

Apps

At the core of ‌xrOS‌ will be re-imagined versions of stock Apple apps like Safari, Photos, Messages, Maps, Apple TV+, Apple Music, Podcasts, Reminders, and Calendar, as well as a FaceTime app customized for the headset. The Maps app will also feature, and could incorporate some of Apple's Look Around and landmark functionality, allowing users to explore cities around the world.

Users will be able to work on several apps at the same time, while an ‌xrOS‌ App Store will host made-for-headset apps, as well as existing ‌App Store‌ content. Apple is also said to be adapting ‌iPad‌ apps for the headset's 3D interface.

In addition, Apple is set on transforming several existing services and apps into immersive viewing experiences. For example, users will be able to watch videos in virtual reality environments as if they were looking at a giant screen, or participate in guided meditations accompanied by immersive visuals, audio, and voiceovers.

Some of the apps and services said to offer radically different experiences in ‌xrOS‌ include Apple Fitness+, ‌Apple TV‌+ (with a focus on viewing sports content like MLB and MLS), and a 3D version of Apple's collaborative Freeform tool. As for ‌FaceTime‌, with all of the cameras that the headset is expected to have, one-on-one chats are said to feature realistic avatars which mimic the user's actual facial expressions and body movements.

Apple is also said to have created a Books app for reading in virtual reality, a Health app focusing on psychological wellness, and a Camera app that can take images from the headset's cameras.

Gaming and App Creation

To get people to purchase the mixed-reality headset, Apple will need to convince users that the software experiences are worth it. That will require not only compelling first-party experiences, but also innovative third-party apps from developers.

With gaming reportedly a focus, Apple is said to have been working with a select number of game developers to help them update their existing content for mixed reality, but Apple reportedly also has a robust set of tools available that will allow non-developers to create their own AR/VR experiences. According to one report, customers will be able to create and release AR apps for the headset using Siri as an assistant, even if they do not have the ability to code.

The report likens Apple's tool to Minecraft and Roblox, which allow anyone to easily create 3D tools and worlds. Apple is said to be utilizing technology that it acquired from Montreal-based startup Fabric Software in 2017, and customers would be able to distribute the AR apps they create on the ‌App Store‌ alongside developers.

It's worth noting that the report cites sources who last saw demonstrations of the tool in 2021, so the report is based on older information and it's possible that Apple's plans have changed at least slightly in the time that has passed since. Whether this latter report is still accurate is something we should learn soon.

When is xrOS Coming?

Apple's software tools for the headset are likely to be revealed at WWDC 2023, giving developers time to create AR and VR apps and experiences for the headset before it launches. In that sense, we won't see the full version of ‌xrOS‌ until the headset is officially released to the public, and that isn't expected to happen until later in the year.

For everything else we know about the headset, including all the hardware details, be sure to check our dedicated AR/VR headset roundup.