At Apple, it’s time for final rehearsals. On Monday at 7:00 p.m. (Paris time, 10:00 a.m. Cupertino), the heart of Apple Park will resound with cheers from developers on hand to attend the WWDC 23 keynote and discover all the new features. They can witness much more than that, a small revolution: a completely new product, ready to restore the brand’s credentials and shake up the industry.
Without offending the HomePod, presented at a similar event in 2018, to say that the last real innovation of Apple dates from 2014 and the presentation of the Apple Watch. Meanwhile, the arrival of the AirPods also arrived, which democratized the market for wireless headphones and enriched the home boxes. But like the HomePod, they didn’t bring about any revolution in form or substance, they simply refined and monetized a pre-existing recipe.
Although not the first of its kind, the Apple Watch created a whole new market segment that it dominates quite easily in terms of sales, despite being exclusive to the iPhone and its own operating system (watchOS). This is certainly what Tim Cook and his people hope to reiterate by introducing (finally) the whispered mixed reality headset. It is true that it will not be the pioneer, the market is already monopolized by Microsoft and its HoloLens, or even Meta and its Meta Quest Pro capable of everything. But we know that Apple never embarks on an adventure and that if it gets it right, it will take AR to at least a whole new level. It remains to be seen what to do with it.
The helmet at last!
Fantasies and rumors abound. For a long time, leaked information suggested that two helmets (or a helmet and goggles) lived side by side in the Apple Park R&D labs. In short, it would be a helmet that would offer experiences in virtual reality and augmented reality. Tim Cook has never hidden his preference for the second over the first, seeing more possibilities there, especially with the support of the iPhone. In recent years, the company has also multiplied the possibilities in augmented reality thanks to the LiDAR sensor on the back of the iPhone Pro and iPad Pro. And there are more than 14,000 compatible applications in the App Store, be it for education, decoration, architecture , work or games.
Announced under the possible name “Reality Pro” or “Apple Reality Glasses”, the headset would possibly look like a rather thin skin, a bit like the Quest 3 unveiled by Meta last week. It would therefore be an autonomous headset (like the Quest Pro, the Quest 2 or even the Valve, the HTC Vive XR Elite), which depends on a connected external battery to last longer. The device would be of the highest technological flight.
If Apple has obviously not formalized its next arrival, Reality Pro would benefit from the internal applications available in virtual reality (Safari, Apple TV, FaceTime, Freeform, etc.). If uncertainty persists regarding the uses of the product, with or without iPhone, but also to its real target (everyone or only pro), the price could be quite prohibitive for some, around $3,000. Doubts remain about the real purpose of this attempt by Apple, which may have kept options in its pocket.
A MacBook that thinks big
Last year, Apple introduced its MacBook Air with the M2 chip and a new design. But that doesn’t mean the products are common in June. It was a pretty rare event for a long time. This year could once again prove that habits are wrong. If the M3 chip was not presented, it is still rumored that a new computer should appear, under the M2 chip (basic, Max, Pro or Ultra – no one knows).
MacBook Air fans have been waiting for a bigger screen for a long time. Traditionally in a 13-inch (or 13.6-inch) format, the screen diagonal could increase to 15 inches, in a design identical to that of 2022. In terms of resolution, we would be closer to that of the 14-inch MacBook Pro ( 3024 x 1964 pixels), according to Bloomberg.
To satisfy the professionals who had acclaimed it despite its already high price, the Mac Studio, the compact and multi-connector design computer, could take a leap of possibilities by going under the M2 Pro, Max or Ultra chip. It remains to be seen if Apple will also optimize the screen that accompanied it, the Studio Display, an interesting product, but limited in several aspects. And developers are still desperately waiting for the return of a Mac Pro that is finally powered by an Apple Silicon chip. If powerful headset apps need to be developed, this might be the year or never to give it a second youth.
iOS 17 at least, watchOS 10 to the maximum of its possibilities
WWDC is above all every year the time to discover the future operating systems of Apple devices, in particular iOS. Version 17 shouldn’t be the most revolutionary after many changes made by iOS 16 last year that the company was pleased to see so quickly and widely adopted by its users. However, several additions are expected.
Placed horizontally, the iPhone’s locked screen could take on the appearance of a smart screen like Google Nest Hub or Amazon Echo Show, with all the information at a glance (home automation, calendar, reminders, info…), ad Bloomberg. According Wall Street JournaliOS 17 could implement a kind of diary to transcribe your daily thoughts and activities on the water.
On the health side, iOS 17 could inherit new tools for tracking emotions and monitoring vision. A Health application that could finally reach the iPad. Announced in partnership with Google, mention should also be made of the new alert system in case of unwanted tracking by Bluetooth beacons of all kinds (AirTag, Tile, Samsung SmartTag, Chipolo, etc.).
As always, iOS will be enriched with accessibility options. Apple recently introduced it as the ability to synthesize your own voice and thus transform it into a tool to vocally transcribe your writing in case you can no longer speak. There will also be a simplified home screen to access the main applications with a click on a larger tile.
Towards the arrival of an alternative App Store
But one issue that will draw attention is how Apple could respond to the European Union’s request to open its App Store to competition with the Digital Market Law. The company has until March 2024 to comply, as it has long fought to ban all other app download stores, citing the security of its devices. Apple has already launched its communication campaign to remember how its store is safe, beneficial for developers who lend themselves to the game and benefit from the millions of dollars/euros redistributed thanks to it. Another store for the form, keeping its developers in their seraglio.
If macOS, the operating system of MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac and other Macs, will also be on the menu with some small improvements, especially we expect many new features for the Apple Watch with watchOS 10. Widgets are mentioned to take place on the screen more easily than the simple complications that can be displayed in a restricted way (time zones, agenda, form, music, calls, weather, etc.). The uses of the buttons and the digital crown should be redesigned to better manage the widgets. Apple would have finally accepted the possibility of synchronizing its connected watch with an iPad or a Mac and not only with the iPhone.
The veil will be lifted on all of this on Monday in what could be “one of Apple’s longest WWDC conferences ever,” according to Mark Gurman, the specialist journalist for Apple. Bloomberg. When we know that sometimes they have arrived at 2:45, we will have to plan time in the afternoon to discover everything.
Source: BFM TV
