Crazy demo shows how Vision Pro could revolutionize sports… if Apple fixes one big problem
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One of the best things about the Apple Vision Pro is the immersive experience it can provide when watching content. That’s something many people have praised about the spatial computer. However, there’s an immediate downside that you’ll notice immediately: you’re the only person enjoying that immersive experience. You can’t truly share it with other Vision Pro users, even if they’re sitting beside you, wearing their own headsets.
That’s one thing Apple will hopefully fix via future visionOS updates. Otherwise, we will all be alone in these devices, unable to watch immersive movies, shows, or sports with friends and family.
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I think the Vision Pro can revolutionize so many experiences, and it’s not just about turning the ceiling of your room into a huge screen for your favorite moves and sporting events. As you can see in the screenshot above and video demo below, I’m thinking specifically about sports.
The concept above shows what could be possible on the Vision Pro with the right apps. And as you’re about to see, that sort of sports-watching experience would work great as a shared experience with Apple’s spatial Persona avatars for the Vision Pro.
What you’ll see in the clips below will feel like something out of a sci-fi movie. But it’s an experience that the Vision Pro can actually turn into a reality.
We’re looking at the live stream of a soccer game from the German league played in augmented reality. The main screen looks like a regular TV, but you can resize it and place it anywhere in your living room.
Things get a lot crazier from there.
You can turn on an immersive view and make it seem like you’re in the stadium. Even better than that is using the extra space around the screen to enjoy stats for the game.
What I like most is the 3D version of the match at the bottom of your field of view. This gives you an entirely different perspective, complete with interesting stats and tidbits. You can see the trajectory of a pass and detailed info about the current play. This experience would work great for rewatching goals, missed opportunities, and other highlights.
As a football fan, I’d love an experience like this, though, admittedly, I haven’t watched that many matches lately. The Vision Pro would certainly be a great reason to rediscover the sport, assuming I actually buy the pricey spatial computer. I am a big fan of the Vision Pro but have lost interest in it lately while waiting for it to reach European markets.
I will say that I don’t want a Vision Pro just for the content-watching experience, no matter how amazing this soccer streaming concept might look.
Back to the app concept that Immersiv demoed during SportsInnovation 2024, I’ll have to tackle the obvious issue. The best part of watching sports is sharing that experience with friends and family. That’s not possible with the Vision Pro, even if every member of your family buys a $3,500+ spatial computer.
Also, you can’t actually share Vision Pro content consumption experiences with friends using spatial Personas, as they show in the demo. That could change in the near future, but it’s up to Apple to make it happen.
The same Immersiv developers put up a second demo of the same soccer streaming app that features a shared experience between two users via the Persona feature.
The two people don’t have to be present physically in the same location. But they can see each other’s Personas and share the same sports-watching experience, complete with all the extra screens. The two viewers can see all the player stats and the 3D version of the game.
Now, that’s something I’d enjoy, and it’s why I think Vision Pro can change the way we watch sports. If Apple can offer these experiences with the help of first- or third-party apps, then other VR headset makers will probably want to copy them.
The same might happen to movies and TV shows, as app developers come up with richer streaming experiences for the Vision Pro and other spatial computers.
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