Apple Vision Pro will have access to over 150 3D movies at launch.
One of the key use cases Apple is pitching Vision Pro for is watching traditional media like movies and TV shows on a giant virtual screen, with a choice of background between your real room (optionally darkened), a fully virtual environment, or a blend of both.
Apple confirmed this week that both the Apple TV app and “several streaming apps” including Disney+ will offer 3D versions of movies at no additional cost if you’re already entitled to the 2D version through purchase, rental, or subscription.
Over 150 3D movies will be available at launch, including:
- Avatar: The Way of Water
- Dune
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Apple is also promising “new 3D editions alongside or shortly following standard 2D releases” in future.
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Some cinemas still show 3D versions of movies, but TV manufacturers stopped supporting 3D around 2016. Viewing 3D video content in head-mounted displays is a markedly better experience than using 3D glasses with a TV, though. You get a more pronounced sense of depth, far less eyestrain, no ghosting, and higher brightness relative to the background. So could headsets like Vision pro eventually revive 3D in the home?
Potentially, but there is a major issue that will need to be overcome first: comfort. Early impressions of Vision Pro suggest it feels too heavy to be comfortable for this kind of extended use, at least with its default strap, a concern we noted in our brief hands-on impressions too. New PC headsets like Bigscreen Beyond are essentially solving this problem, but they lack the computing hardware and vast sensor array onboard a product like Vision Pro.
Making the headset lighter and more comfortable is reportedly Apple’s top priority for Vision Pro’s successor.
