All my thoughts after 40 hours in the Vision Pro
Apple’s Vision Pro headset provokes both awe and skepticism among early adopters, who praise its immersive media and flexible virtual workspace but fault its comfort, text clarity, and current usefulness for serious coding or long work sessions. Many compare it to earlier VR devices that were quickly abandoned, questioning whether this generation will escape becoming an expensive novelty and instead replace multi‑monitor setups. Beyond the ergonomics and feature gaps, commenters worry about dopamine addiction, social isolation, and long‑term effects on eyesight, while others argue that with hardware progress and better norms it could become a powerful, mainstream tool rather than a dystopian step.
Addiction, Mental Health, and Dystopia
- Several commenters fear “dopamine death spirals” and social/mental-health damage similar to smartphones and social media.
- Some are especially wary of powerful AR after reading dystopian fiction like The Electric State.
- Others argue individuals still have agency and that blaming tech alone is simplistic, but there’s broad acknowledgement that at some point regulation can be justified, analogized to tobacco and firearms.
Use Cases and Everyday Value
- A subset finds Vision Pro genuinely useful: extended, configurable “desktop” space, focused work, and more ergonomic laptop use on couches or in rentals.
- Media consumption is widely praised: cinema-style viewing, immersive Apple/Disney content, travel shows, and shared VR activities.
- Others report the same pattern as with Quest: huge initial “wow” that fades quickly; devices end up unused.
Programming and Productivity
- Multiple reports say Mac Virtual Display is too blurry for serious coding compared with real monitors, largely due to resolution and scaling limits.
- Native apps look sharper than the streamed Mac display, but even then, virtual screens don’t yet match the clarity and density of a good monitor.
- Some use AVP productively for “portable dual-monitor” style work when away from a proper desk, but still prefer traditional multi-monitor setups when available.
- People want Xcode/terminal on-device and multiple Mac screens; current limitations are seen as deal-breakers for many developers.
Comfort, Ergonomics, and Hardware Trajectory
- Experiences diverge sharply: some can wear it for hours after tweaking straps and seals; others find it painful within 10–20 minutes due to weight and neck strain.
- Comfort is identified as at least as important as visual quality for long-term adoption.
- Many think we’re a few hardware generations away from monitors-equivalent clarity and all-day wear; others note such “two more generations” optimism has been repeated before and may underestimate physical limits.
Social Norms, Parenting, and Ethics
- A joking remark about ignoring family for a week to test the device sparks a large debate:
- Some see it as normal work sacrifice, comparable to business travel or long shifts.
- Others see it as selfish, misogynistic signaling about childcare burdens.
- Several commenters worry widespread headset use will worsen social skills, depression, anxiety, and perhaps even eyesight; others look forward to benefits for people with limited mobility in old age.
Interface Design and Interaction
- Eye-tracking and hand-gesture navigation are viewed as impressive but “meh” in precision; virtual typing without a physical keyboard is widely disliked.
- Some argue future-rich gesture vocabularies would be undesirable; stylus or traditional pointing devices remain better for precision tasks.
- There’s discomfort with people wearing headsets while conversing; lightweight, sunglasses-like AR or contact-lens HUDs are mentioned as socially more acceptable long-term goals, though timelines are debated and seen as uncertain.