“Apple is putting some time and money into exploring the future of virtual and augmented reality,” Aaron Tilley reports for Forbes.
“Apple has made another acquisition in the field with Flyby Media, a mobile applications company that focuses on spatial perception,” Tilley reports. “Flyby had been an early partner of Google’s Project Tango, the search giant’s attempt at bringing 3D mapping to mobile devices. Apple has also made several other acquisitions in the field, starting with 3D sensing company PrimeSense for $360 million in 2013. In 2015, Apple acquired established augmented reality company Metaio and motion capture startup Faceshift.”
“Outside of making acquisitions, Apple is also hiring quickly, including Doug Bowman, a prominent VR researcher and computer science professor at Virginia Tech,” Tilley reports. “Apple has recruited talent from Microsoft’s HoloLens division and Lytro, a startup that makes light field cameras, which capture detailed information about how light rays are traveling. Apple has hired at least 21 employees who once worked at Lytro, according to a LinkedIn search. These former Lytro employees show experience working in areas like user experience, computer vision and ‘display exploration.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Project RDF.
SEE ALSO:
Apple acquires Flyby Media; assembles large team of virtual and augmented reality experts – January 29, 2016
Apple hires leading virtual reality researcher – January 22, 2016
Apple is building a virtual reality supply chain with disruptive potential, new research shows – November 19, 2015
Analyst: Apple team exploring virtual reality/augmented reality – August 31, 2015
Apple exploring a new reality with purchase of Metaio – June 3, 2015
Apple patents perforated augmented reality display that you can see and hear through – May 29, 2015
Apple acquires augmented reality company Metaio – May 28, 2015
New Apple haptics patent application reveals diamond-layered trackpad that simulates wood, other textures – April 23, 2015
Apple granted U.S. patent for hybrid VR head-mounted display – February 18, 2015
Apple is working on VR user interfaces and gaming; looking for Oculus and Leap experts – February 10, 2015
Apple granted patent for display-based speakers for iOS devices – January 13, 2015
Apple granted a patent for devices with a transparent display – November 18, 2014
Apple’s new iPhones, iPads could feature haptic displays – June 30, 2014
Apple patent application reveals personal display headset invention – May 8, 2014
Apple patent application reveals wildly intelligent multi-tiered haptics system – May 3, 2012
Apple continues to tweak Apple TV video headset accessory – April 10, 2014
Apple patent application reveals sapphire flexible transparent display devices created with Liquidmetal – December 19, 2013
Apple granted knockout patent for head-mounted personal display – December 10, 2013
iGlasses: Apple granted patent for head-mounted augmented reality displays – July 5, 2012
Apple files patent application for haptic feedback touch-based user interface – March 22, 2012
I used Google Cardboard several weeks ago. It was my first VR experience ever. It was cardboard, plastic and my own phone held inside by a rubber band. And it was awesome.
The kids couldn’t stop playing with it. I used it until my right arm got too tired of holding the contraption to my face.
It is just insane to look up and see up. To look around and see around. It’s way too much fun, and too immersive for it not to catch on.
For work I use Adobe Connect for “video conferencing.” It sucks ass. I mean it’s fine for what it does (though we do need to use our cell phones for audio because of whatever). But it would be a game. changer. To strap on a strap-on goggle and be able to be sitting around a park bench with the group. You could hear them on the correct side. You could have an external camera on your head gear that looks at your office desk so that you could literally take notes in VR, on the top of Mt. McKinley, or in the audience of a Tony Robbins seminar, and in the VR you’d see your hand writing, while in your office your hand would be writing.
This is clearly the next paradigm of something. It will be conferencing. It will be gaming. It will be entertainment. It will be education (could this finally change Higher Learning forever?).
In essence it will be some part of everything and every bit of some things. Certainly it WILL BE.
Apple clearly sees this coming. For my part I really can’t wait.
At this point, we know 2016 is going to be the year of consumer VR. Whether it will be ‘good’ VR is another matter. But there are at least six companies hoping to make a dent in this potential market.
Here we go! . . . (0_0) (o_o) (O_O) (0_o)
VR 👎
I believe that Sony will be the first to make a mainstream VR with it’s Playstation VR coming out in June (if it’s priced as reasonably as people speculate)… Oculus Rift took themselves out of the mainstream with their current $600 price tag.
It will be interesting to see what Apple wants to do amid the increasing competition in this field.
If users need to spend $2000 to $3000 for the VR gear (goggles and high-end computer) then VR will not appeal to the masses. The other issues, which will thwart adoption are the clunky design of the headgear and cumbersome I/O.
What could become popular is a compact device that fits over the ear, which will be able to project light beams around and in front of the user’s eyes/face on demand. It would be ideal if the light fields were invisible to onlookers by implementing optical cloaking techniques.
The device could also be made out of liquid metal, which would mean the user would have touch swipe input. The product should also have the ability to accept voice commands.
Slowly but surely we will get there.. 👍
Apple is going to do what they always do – wait until a technology is mature then swoop in with great hardware and software and own the market.
I’ve used Samsung’s Gear VR and it’s AWESOME, but still a beta product. The phone overheats within 20 minutes. And even 2560 x 1440 resolution isn’t enough to overcome pixelation.
I see Apple making a stand-alone product that will be a separate line and not an iPhone accessory. It’ll need a 6-7 inch screen at 4k or even 5k resolution, and a processor that can drive all those pixels. Pricing would have to comparable to the iPad.