Apple’s Vision Pro spot draws similarities with the very first iPhone ad

Apple is all set to launch the much anticipated Apple Vision Pro— a mixed-reality headset on February 2. 

This is an entirely new product category for the tech giant after entering the smartwatch category back in 2015. The virtual reality (VR) headset was announced on June 5, 2023, at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference and has been in development for a decade.

To announce its launch, Apple released an interesting commercial without revealing anything about the product at all. Titled Get Ready, the film features famous characters from movies such as Up, Ant-Man, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, and Iron Man as they don helmets, goggles, and glasses. In the final moment, a woman dons the Vision Pro headset with a message that reads, "Get Ready."

The ad pays homage to the very first iPhone commercial titled Hello. Released back in 2007, the iPhone ad incorporated snippets from over 30 different movies and TV shows, including The Fugitive, The Incredibles, and American Graffiti, with the characters answering rotary dial telephones with “Hello,” culminating in a shot of the very first iPhone.

The subtle yet impactful nod to this historical commercial underscores the significance that the Vision Pro headset carries for the company.

“Today marks the beginning of a new era for computing,” Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook had said at the product announcement back in June.

“Just as the Mac introduced us to personal computing, and iPhone introduced us to mobile computing, Apple Vision Pro introduces us to spatial computing. Built upon decades of Apple innovation, Vision Pro is years ahead and unlike anything created before — with a revolutionary new input system and thousands of groundbreaking innovations. It unlocks incredible experiences for our users and exciting new opportunities for our developers,” he stated.

In June, the tech giant also unveiled an extensive film showcasing the features of the Apple Vision Pro. Notable among its myriad highlights is the absence of controllers; instead, the device is entirely governed by eye tracking, hand gestures, and voice commands. In a first, the VR headset can be powered by a braided cable connected to a battery pack designed to be worn at the hip or plugged into an adapter.

“An app can be navigated to and highlighted by looking at it and then opened with a tap of the fingers. Scrolling is done with a simple flick of the fingers,” says Apple.

Priced at $3,499, Vision Pro will be available for pre-orders starting January 19 and is scheduled to hit the stores on February 2 in the United States. It is also expected that Apple will further sell prescription inserts for the headset at $149.

According to Forbes, despite its steep price point, the demand for the Vision Pro is expected to be high, with a potential sell-out in its first year. The announcement of the Vision Pro’s sale date also resulted in a 1.5% uptick in Apple’s shares, suggesting investor confidence in the product’s potential.

Apple’s immediate competitors like Samsung and Meta are also actively eyeing the VR headset market in 2024. According to reports, Samsung’s XR Headset might make its debut by late 2024, with the company collaborating with Google and Qualcomm to develop its VR headsets.

Meta, which has already been a player in the VR market since 2020 launched the Quest 3 headset in fall 2023.