‘Heavy, but phenomenal…’: A developer’s first-hand account on using the Vision Pro and creating apps for it

“You go to some of the most beautiful parts of the world, meditate, or spend five to 15 minutes of your time there just to disconnect a little bit and have beautiful scenery around you. You can engage in activities like putting puzzles together, throwing paper airplanes from the top of a cliff, or watching a lava fireplace inside a beautiful glass home,” he explains, adding that his team has an internal target to launch Sojourns by the end of March on the Vision Pro.

The Vision Pro headset blends both virtual reality and augmented reality, a technology that overlays virtual images on live video of the real world. (Image credit: Enrique Sánchez-Rivera)

Sojourns is less complicated than the other app because it’s all rendered and doesn’t use real footage or 3D scans. Sánchez-Rivera says he plans to bring the meditation app to Meta’s Quest headsets first. Even though Sojourns is designed for a Meta Quest headset, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done in terms of hand gestures for the Vision Pro version of the app as it relies on eye tracking and hand gestures to allow users to manipulate objects in the virtual space in front of them. However, the helicopter training app required a fair amount of work to develop the application for Vision Pro.

The AR helicopter training app requires users to go through a pre-flight checklist where they have to review a list and check everything before they fly. Sánchez-Rivera says that since the app already exists on iOS and is designed for mobile, the ‘challenge’ was how to rethink and redo it for a headset while also making it more immersive.

“The voice of an instructor walks you through the different parts of the pre-flight, and you have to tap on the screen to accept and ensure that you have checked every part of the checklist before you can continue moving down the list,” he says. “For the Vision Pro version, we needed to take those hand gestures and put them in the context of selecting them with your eyes. Sánchez-Rivera says it took the company over a year to develop the AR helicopter training app for iOS, but porting it to the Vision Pro requires at least three to four months with all its functionalities.

Sojourns will be available on Apple Vision Pro at the end of March. (Image credit: Enrique Sánchez-Rivera)

“We are offering 3D augmented reality flight lessons where you can observe the helicopter flying in your space from a third-person perspective. You can witness the airflow and aerodynamics in action as the helicopter hovers moves forward, or performs various maneuvers. We want to make sure it’s not just a matter of transporting an iPad app; rather, we are rebuilding the UI to be more intuitive for Vision Pro users,” he continues.

For Sánchez-Rivera, porting an app that’s originally meant for mobile to a headset like the Vision Pro wasn’t easy, it seems. “I have had one of my developers complain that things are not as straightforward as they could be, but that doesn’t take away from the excitement and the willingness to work on it.”

Apple says its Vision Pro has 600 native apps and games at present, in addition to the over 1 million iPad apps that the headset will be able to run without any extra work from developers. “I would say that in our situation, it wasn’t an easy thing to port over,” he reasoned. “I am sure there are some AR apps where porting and expansion to native languages is easier. But for us, this specific application was not as quick as pushing the port button.”

Not only is porting apps that involve augmented reality complicated but also the financial viability could be a huge deterrent when deciding whether to invest your money in developing an application for Vision Pro, especially if you run a small studio. “If I were to estimate how much it’s going to cost us to take that iOS app and put it into Vision Pro, I would probably say it’s about 200 to 300 hours, and I would probably estimate that maybe $26,000 to $36,000 to do the port. It’s not cheap for us; we have to involve two developers, our UX/UI designer, the project manager, and also me.”

At 3,500 USD, it’s not a device for the masses yet. (Image credit: Enrique Sánchez-Rivera)

However, the cost could triple if the AR Helicopter training app had to be built for the Vision Pro from scratch. “I would probably say anywhere above $100,000.” That’s a lot of money to develop a native application for a headset that costs $3,500 is only in the hands of developers and enthusiasts, and is years away from mainstream popularity.

Despite the high development cost, Sánchez-Rivera says the Vision Pro opens new possibilities that cannot be done with existing platforms. He sees Vision Pro opening new avenues and opportunities for his “creative augmented and virtual reality development studio”. “We have got to get more storytellers in our team because now we can get into the production of small short films.”

But Sánchez-Rivera also realises that the Vision Pro is a long-term bet for Apple, and even though his studio is involved in developing apps for the headset, moving slowly may seem to be the right approach. “The technology is mind-blowing, the resolution is mind-blowing. When you connect your laptop to it, it’s a little bit less resolution, but everything else that’s natively built for it is unbelievable,” he says. However, Sánchez-Rivera doesn’t seem too impressed with the headset’s weight and how it can get uncomfortable as it starts weighing on your face.

“We need a second generation… maybe a third-generation device to see mass adoption,” he responds when asked how long it will take to popularise a device like the Vision Pro among average consumers. “I kind of held back my reins a little bit and said, ‘Okay, you know what, we have got plenty of time. We don’t have to rush into anything. Let’s take our time and work on what we have got now. I don’t see ourselves planning any quick, fast, major moves. We’re not Disney.”

The big feature of the Vision Pro, right now, is consuming immersive 3D videos. (Image credit: Apple)

Sánchez-Rivera came to the US from Colombia when he was 18 years old. Over the years, he dabbled in many businesses, such as running a swimsuit and sportswear company called La Isla, before being exposed to augmented reality, the technology that works by overlaying computer-generated virtual elements onto the real world. “I started gathering interest in augmented reality and virtual reality because I wanted to provide a solution for my retail and wholesale clients with my apparel company. That’s when I got involved with a few talented folks in Columbia and founded this AR/VR studio,” he recalls.

From then to now, Sánchez-Rivera says a lot has changed, and AR has come a long way. “I think adoption has become a little bit more common, and people are more receptive to looking at it, testing, and marketing it,” he says. “The arrival of WebAR has fast-forwarded things for us and our clients.” But that doesn’t change the fact that augmented reality is far from mass adoption. “Even when I have the Apple Vision Pro in my hands, I can see, well, this is where it’s going. It still feels niche. I’m not sure when it’s going to become an everyday thing. I can see that it could potentially happen, and that’s exciting.”

Apple is marketing the Vision Pro as an entertainment device, and Sánchez-Rivera agrees. “I tell you right now, even though it’s heavy, I would rather have this than build a movie theater in my home,” he says, adding that the experience of watching immersive movies in 3D and interacting with the world around you is unmatched.

Sánchez-Rivera seen with the Vision Pro, a headset he says is meant for developers like him. (Image credit: Enrique Sánchez-Rivera)

But that doesn’t take away from the fact that the headset itself looks like a pair of ski goggles, and many people may have a problem wearing it. “We have the biggest company in the world putting all the technologies into it, the best humankind can produce, and it still feels uncomfortable. It looks strange in an open society.” Sánchez-Rivera feels the Vision Pro is a first-generation product, keeping early adopters in mind. “It’s heavy, looks weird, feels bulky, and doesn’t do everything you want it to do. I think the convenience of the phone is the key, as it offers the convenience for everything you want to do and can be put away easily,” he adds.

Even though the Vision Pro is Cupertino’s first foray into mixed-reality headsets, it has a lot of similarities to Apple’s other hit products such as the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Apps are still central to how one consumes content on the device. “The Vision Pro is centered around apps. The financial model of the apps works well for Apple and some developers. That model is very strong, and it would be very hard to get away from it,” he explains. But Sánchez-Rivera believes it is the level of personalisation and customisation that makes applications shine.

Although many are comparing the launch of the Vision Pro to the iPhone moment, it’s the purpose and usefulness that will determine whether it can succeed where so many other face computers have failed. “I don’t think the Vision Pro advances my productivity as much as my MacBook Pro. My current Apple products are fantastic for my creativity and productivity. I won’t use my Vision Pro to enhance that; rather, I think I would use this headset to entertain myself,” says Sánchez-Rivera. “If I want to learn piano, the Vision Pro is perfect for that because I need both hands to use it.”