Apple announces visionOS 2 with 3D photo transformations and an ultrawide Mac display

Apple has announced visionOS 2, the second version of the Vision Pro’s operating system. When the update comes later this year, it will bring with it some much-needed changes, including what could be a much better virtual display experience, new Photos features, and an expanded travel mode.

The most significant update, for all the productivity heads out there, is a new ultrawide virtual display feature. Apple says that in visionOS 2, you’ll be able to connect a Vision Pro to a Mac to generate a dual 4K-equivalent curved ultrawide display. Right now, the virtual display feature only does a single up to 5K one.

Also, the company will finally add mouse support to the Vision Pro — at launch, the headset could work with trackpads like the one on a MacBook Air or the standalone Magic Trackpad 2, but oddly left out mouse support. You can still use one inside a mirrored display in the Vision Pro, but not outside of that screen in, say, an iPad or Vision Pro app.

Apple says that in the new update, users will be able to convert any image in the Photos app to a spatial one. Also, visionOS 2 will have train support, so the Vision Pro’s travel mode will no longer be limited to just airplanes.

The company also says it’s adding SharePlay to the visionOS Photos app, which means that you can share the app with another Vision Pro owner using Spatial Personas, a feature Apple introduced in April that puts the ghostly bust of your Vision Pro-having friends right in the room with you. It’s a surprisingly impressive feature that also lets you watch things or edit documents together in actual 3D space.

The company says Red Bull is making a new immersive sports series, while Apple is making its first scripted immersive feature. Apple also said that Canon is releasing a new spatial lens for the EOS R7, one designed specifically for creating content for the Vision Pro.

Finally, the company is rolling out the Vision Pro abroad. Apple is going to start taking preorders in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore on June 13th at 6PM PT, and it’ll be available in those countries on June 28th. Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK will get preorders later, on June 28th at 5AM PT, with the headset officially available on July 12th.

As flashy as it is, the Vision Pro is very much still a first-generation product and it’s good to see the company rolling out some key updates. Apple has pitched it as a productivity device and a tool for enterprise use. (The company loves to talk about how doctors are using it.) With a new curved virtual display, it’s starting to feel much closer to that.

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