The annual Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) kicks off June 6 at 01:00 a.m. Beijing time. Apple recently launched the WWDC23 AR egg, you can use the Safari browser of your iOS device to enter the Apple Events website, and then click the LOGO animation in the center of the screen to see the Easter egg through the camera. In addition, Apple Music has also launched the WWDC23 Power UP playlist, so listen to your favorite songs.
This year, WWDC23 was still a mostly virtual event, and some developers and student representatives were invited to Apple Park to watch presentations and meet Apple employees face-to-face. However, compared to previous years, WWDC23 seems to be particularly rich, and even the keynote may be more than 2 hours long, making it the longest WWDC speech ever. And that could include a highly anticipated new product — Apple's headset may be coming.
So what are the revelations about this headset device, and what other highlights will appear on WWDC23? In this article, the minority will provide you with a preview of WWDC23 based on relevant intelligence at home and abroad.
Reality Pro and xrOS
The rumors of Apple headset devices have been circulating in the rivers and lakes for a long time, but unfortunately everyone has been empty every time. However, the closer we get to WWDC23, the more real the news becomes. Bloomberg analyzed according to the WWDC23 poster, saying that Apple conference posters have always hidden clues about the content of the conference, so we can also get some hints from the WWDC23 poster.
Apple created a number of posters for this WWDC23, one of which is considered to represent Apple Park, but we will find that this is likely to symbolize the "Fresnel lens" commonly used in the optical field.
In addition, the color scheme of all WWDC23 posters is very much like some kind of optical phenomenon. Combined with previous news about "Apple will use hybrid Fresnel lenses", these clues seem to confirm that Apple will release its own head display device at WWDC23.
Schematic diagram of Apple patents (U.S. Patent and Trademark Office)
From the information obtained so far, Apple's headset device may be named "Reality Pro" instead of the rumored "Apple Glass", and has the following characteristics in terms of hardware:
- The device is light and comfortable, the weight (without battery) remains below 300g, and hopefully less than 200g of a Sony phone, the headband part is made of materials similar to Apple Watch straps, and the face part is made of mesh breathable material;
- There will be a button on the left and right ends to control the device, one of which will be similar to the crown knob of the Apple Watch;
Exterior Scenario (zelbo.nyc)
- Equipped with an M-series processor with powerful performance, which means that Reality Pro can run independently without relying on any external computing power;
- Does not support the 3.5mm headphone jack, but is equipped with an H2 audio chip, which can form a low-latency link with the second-generation AirPods Pro and newer products;
- According to the news, its internal display components are provided by Sony, containing two 1.41-inch 4K Micro-OLED panels, a single peak brightness may exceed 5000 nits, and the paper parameters are a little "outrageously high";
- There will also be a low-power display provided by Samsung on the outside of the device to facilitate interaction with others while wearing the device;
Exterior rendering (9to5Mac)
- Provide "mixed reality" apps that support both VR and AR effects (seemingly similar to Microsoft HoloLens), using physical knobs to switch display modes;
- Hybrid Fresnel lens combination provides a maximum field of view width of 120°; Supports motorized interpupillary distance adjustment, eye tracking, and focus rendering functions;
- Powered by an external stand-alone battery pack that can be worn around the waist to reduce the user's physical burden, and connected to the headset via a MagSafe magnetic cable;
- Equipped with several optical cameras and LiDAR components on the outside of the device, it can track facial expressions, capture body movements, and scan environmental 3D data; There is also news that the Reality Pro will be equipped with iris scanning for authentication (Samsung silently shed tears).
Leaked component photos (MacRumors)
In terms of software, Reality Pro will be equipped with "xrOS" (or "realityOS") developed by Apple for headsets. According to @stroughtonsmith's revelations, Apple has not even removed clues about the system in one of its open source projects.
It is reported that the system has a similar UI interface to iOS or macOS, and supports running iOS and iPadOS applications in 2D mode. Apple will provide new development kits for developers to create, as well as an App Store dedicated to headsets to provide games and apps to users. According to the news, the audio game "Beat Saber", which was once extremely popular on the VR platform, may be the first to go online and become the demo content on WWDC23.
xrOS trademark registered in New Zealand (MacRumors)
As a member of the Apple ecosystem, Reality Pro and the system will of course support linking, interaction, data transfer and other functions with various devices, such as typing through the iPhone, as a display for Mac devices, and so on. As a heavyweight product with high expectations, how the Reality Pro really looks like is still expected to be reported live by WWDC23.
iOS 17 and iPadOS 17
Can't eat Reality Pro and xrOS? Take a look at information that is more relevant to you.
The time has come in 2023, and iOS is about to undergo the 17th major version update. However, at this WWDC23, iOS may not have a major update. One reason is that Apple may be focusing more on Reality Pro and xrOS, so iOS 17 initially leaned more towards bug fixes and detail optimizations, but Apple also added some new features that users needed.
As for iPadOS, because it is the same as the iOS division, some of these features also apply, and we will not mention them separately here.
The European region supports sideloading, application libraries, or naming
If you want to list the top 10 hot news in the technology circle some time ago, then the EU legislation requires mobile phone manufacturers to support side-loading applications must be in the top three. According to Bloomberg, Apple has planned to open up the app sideloading feature starting with iOS 17, but will only pilot it in the EU region first.
Apple has always objected to sideloading apps, arguing that opening sideloading would compromise the privacy and security of iOS devices. To keep devices as secure as possible when sideloading is open, Apple plans to introduce macOS-like verification in iOS to ensure that sideloaded apps from non-App Store are also safe to use.
Another update in app management is that iOS 17 may support renaming app library folders, whereas before that, each folder classification was an automatically generated name based on the app classification.
Support for Reality Pro devices with the new CarPlay
As mentioned earlier, WWDC23 is very likely to release Reality Pro, and as a member of the Apple ecosystem, it will support linkage with iPhone devices. Therefore, iOS 17 will definitely add support for new devices to ensure the integrity of the Apple ecosystem.
At WWDC22, Apple released a new CarPlay, which can achieve deep integration and control with the car, and in order to adapt to the increasing number of "big color TVs" in the current car, the new CarPlay also provides multi-screen linkage functions. Cars that are fully adapted to the new CarPlay will be launched by the end of 2023, including Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and other car manufacturers. Considering that it is now the middle of 2023, it is very likely that the new CarPlay will be announced in iOS 17 at WWDC23.
Expand the Spirit Island application scenario
On the iPhone 14 Pro series, Apple combined a new screen cutout method to develop an interactive method called "Dynamic Island". On iOS 17, the interactive interface of the voice assistant Siri is also expected to be integrated into it, which can keep the screen content intact to the greatest extent and not be blocked by Siri's "ball". According to earlier news, the Spirit Island function may also be carried on 4 models of the full range of iPhone 15.
（Apple）
The lock screen will have more information to show, as well as richer UI customization options
In iOS 16, apps can use Live Activities to display key information directly on the lock screen as cards, while Maps takes over the lock screen to display navigation information. iOS 17 will improve this feature, with apps able to display important advertising information over a larger area, and Maps going a step further with real-time maps and route planning directly on the lock screen. And the lock screen customization options in iOS 17 may be richer, and iPadOS 17 will follow this feature.
Conceptual map of the redesigned Live Activity interface (MacRumors)
The iOS 17 lock screen will also closely follow Apple's in-depth layout of the smart home. According to Bloomberg, after updating iOS 17, when the iPhone is horizontally attached to the MagSafe charging base, the iPhone lock screen will display the smart home control interface, and can also display common information such as schedule and weather, further strengthening the smart home attributes of iOS devices.
Speaking of which, there are indeed many bloggers who are teaching everyone how to turn idle iPhones and iPads into home hubs, such as fixed screen displays, homemade magnetic tools and so on. And this time Apple directly provides a more convenient way to "transform", can it also be seen as encouraging users to use old idle devices? If you're wondering if your device can be upgraded to iOS 17 and iPad 17, read on.
In addition, iOS 17 may also optimize desktop widgets, control centers and wallpaper effects in terms of UI, such as adding more interactive functions to desktop widgets, adjusting the display of control centers, etc., but the final effect will not be revealed until WWDC23.
Accessibility also has AI blessings
Accessibility features for Apple devices have always been the industry benchmark. In a recent official press release, Apple introduced upcoming accessibility updates, including a streamlined interface for users with cognitive impairments, Live Speech for hearing impairments, and Personal Voice features.
Among them, the Live Speech function can help people with language impairments "speak", users only need to enter text, iPhone, iPad or Mac can convert it into speech. In this way, Live Speech seems to be no different from the general speech-to-text function. In fact, Live Speech can even play a role in phone calls and FaceTime, and what is even more gratifying is that Personal Voice integrated into Live Speech allows people with speech impairments to "leave their voices".
Live Speech 和 Personal Voice（Apple）
Personal Voice integrates seamlessly with Live Speech and is primarily aimed at users who can currently speak, but are facing loss of language ability. This feature mimics the voice of a person with a speech impairment through machine learning, enabling a voice that closely resembles that of a user when using Live Speech. This is a warmer way for many people with language impairments and their families to communicate.
For visually impaired users, iOS 17 will also update the Magnifier and Point to Read Aloud functions. When using the Magnifier app, the user can point to the text to be read or the button to press, and the device can read the corresponding text in combination with the data from the camera and LiDAR.
Magnifying glass and point-to-point reading (Apple)
There are also app updates and feature improvements
There is news that iOS 17 will also bring updates to a series of apps:
- The Health app will optimize the interface design to add emotion tracking and vision-related health features, while iPad users can use the health app on their devices;
- The wallet app will also be newly designed to provide card search and add a function navigation bar to further refine the classification;
- Apple Music may support displaying lyrics on the lock screen;
- The flashlight brightness will support stepless adjustment;
- Enhance Find My service features and improve AirPlay performance.
Wallet and healthy interface envisioned (9to5Mac)
According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple plans to develop a new journaling app. With the benefits of Apple's ecosystem, this first-party journaling app is able to access some health information as part of the diary content while ensuring security. If the app is successfully developed, it will be released as a built-in app for iOS 17 with a system update.
We combine the "health function will increase the emotion tracking function" just mentioned, and the two seem to have a relationship of hundreds of millions of points, perhaps this is also part of Apple's health map.
Scope of support for iOS 17 and iPadOS 17
Compared with iOS 16, iOS 17 does not have much "qualitative" improvement, so the vast majority of devices that can currently run iOS 16 can still be upgraded to iOS 17; the more controversial devices are iPhone X and iPhone 8 series, and there is no reliable news to determine whether they support upgrading to iOS 17.
iPadOS 17 can support the 2017 iPad Pro, the third generation iPad Air, the sixth generation iPad and the fifth generation iPad mini, and the newer models can eat the latest version of the system with peace of mind; The first generation of 9.7-inch iPad Pro, the first generation of 12.9-inch iPad Pro and the fifth generation iPad are likely to miss iPadOS 17.
macOS 14 and Mac
macOS will also release a new version on WWDC23, but so far, there is only a few information about the new macOS 14 at home and abroad, which may also show that macOS 14 will not have major changes. MacRumors discusses in a podcast what may be updated in macOS 14, such as Safari, Mail, the notification panel, and widget features that may be updated with iOS 17.
By convention, each new version of macOS has a new name (like Oreo and Pie...). Sorry to walk on the Android set). Parker Ortolani, who correctly predicted the macOS name, gave a list of possible names that macOS 14 might adopt, which were trademarks that Apple once registered. Since you see this, why not say in the comment area which one do you think Apple may choose as the name of macOS 14?
In addition to macOS, Mac devices may also be available on WWDC23. At present, there is news that Apple is developing and iterating a number of MacBook product lines, of which the 15-inch MacBook Air is likely to be launched on WWDC23 and will use M2 series chips. There's also a chance that the Mac desktop line will release a new model at WWDC23, which is expected to upgrade the chip to a higher-spec M2 chip (possibly M2 Max and M2 Ultra). As for the new M3 series chips, you may not see the corresponding products until 2024.
MacBook Air with M2 chip released by WWDC22 (Bloomberg)
In addition, according to the news, after WWDC23, Mac Studio devices with M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, 13-inch MacBook Air and MacBook Pro devices with M2 chips will support trade-in. Friends who have these devices on hand can consider replacing them with M3 devices in the future.
watchOS 10
Compared to the small macOS 14, watchOS 10 is likely to be the biggest update since the release of watchOS, especially in terms of user interface.
（MacRumors）
The new design of watchOS 10 is more similar to iOS in many ways, such as a new home screen layout and the ability to create app folders; And the former "Glances" interface style may return to watchOS 10, in which the widget function will also support stacking and switching like iOS.
The former "Glances" style (MacRumors)
It is reported that the weight of the widget function has been improved on watchOS 10, and when using the crown button, it will not return to the home screen of the app, but will jump to the widget interface. It can be seen that for a long time in the future, the widget function will become one of the important ways for users to browse and operate Apple Watch. Parker Ortolani built a conceptual animation for this possible change, and judging from the reaction in the comments section, most users are still looking forward to such an interface change.
In terms of compatibility, Apple Watches that can currently run watchOS 9 can be upgraded to watchOS 10, that is, Apple Watch Series 4 and newer devices. Other than that, there's not much information yet about how watchOS 10 has improved in other ways.
tvOS 17
tvOS 17 doesn't seem to be featured in WWDC23's keynote, but given that tvOS hasn't been "taken seriously" for a long time, it's still possible to appear as one of the new WWDC23 releases.
Even so, judging by the current news, tvOS 17 will still not have major changes. In addition to the routine optimization and upgrade of the system interface on Apple TV devices, a more likely update is that after the introduction of Matter support for tvOS last year, tvOS 17 may update smart home functions, such as upgrading the interface of the Home app, optimizing the operation method, and so on. tvOS on HomePod devices will make Siri support more languages.
Apple
In terms of functions, since tvOS relies more on Apple's existing services to run, tvOS will also get more functions after business sectors such as Apple TV+, Arcade, Fiteness+ are updated and upgraded.
In terms of compatibility, Apple has not planned to retire old devices from getting tvOS updates, so even the earliest 2015 Apple TV devices and the first generation of HomePod are likely to continue to upgrade to tvOS 17.
summary
Based on the above information, you must have the same feeling as me: Apple must have been fully engaged in Reality Pro and xrOS during this time, so that other products have not received much substantial improvement. But from another perspective, we are too familiar with iOS, watchOS, macOS, etc., and it is difficult for general system updates to stimulate our tired nerves, and at this time, if there is a new product of Reailty Pro, which is new and epochal, it may be able to reawaken our curiosity in the digital circle and technology circle.
So what do you hope for this WWDC23, or what news you can share, welcome to the comment area to discuss with everyone.