“Next iOS version will receive fewer innovations due to the arrival of Apple’s VR headset”
Upcoming versions of iOS and macOS may receive fewer major updates than previously planned, reports Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. According to him, this is related to the arrival of Apple’s unannounced VR headset. According to sources, it would be unveiled this spring.
Gurman speaks about the several times the arrival of headset has been postponed and the last time was at the end of last year. Apple had planned to introduce the headset this month and begin shipping later this year, but the company is now aiming for a spring reveal, at least ahead of its Worldwide Developers Conference in June. Gurman reports this based on unnamed sources.
The headset would already be shared with a small number of software developers for testing purposes, so that applications can already be built. The device would run on an OS known internally at Apple as Borealis, which should officially be called xrOS to the outside. The presumed official name would be Reality Pro and deliveries would begin in the fall.
In order to realize the introduction and deliveries in the current year, Apple would have withdrawn money and manpower from other hardware and software departments. This has consequences for those other projects, which in some cases already had to deal with delays, cutbacks and the consequences of the economic downturn.
According to Gurman, this has consequences for iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, among others, but it is not clear whether and how many fewer planned updates these subsequent versions will receive, and what exactly these features would be.
Furthermore, a new high-end version of the Mac Pro would have been canceled. Apple would only release a version with the M2 Ultra, making it a questionable purchase compared to the Mac Studio, and the new Mac Pro would also look identical compared to the 2019 version. Users will not be able to upgrade the working memory themselves , because it is linked to the M2 Ultra chip.
As far as the iPad is concerned, according to Gurman, no major updates are expected in 2023. The arrival of OLED screens is not expected until the first half of 2024. Also in terms of the Apple Watch, there is little to expect in terms of hardware for this year and there would be no plans to release a new Apple TV in 2023.