Report: Apple’s AR headset progressing toward a 2020 release – SiliconANGLE
Apple Inc.’s long-rumored desire to bring an augmented reality headset to market seems to be progressing, as a new report said today that the headset now has a name, an operating system and a planned release date.
Bloomberg claimed that the Apple augmented reality headset is being internally referred to by the code-name “T288” and that the headset is running an operating system called rOS, short allegedly for “reality operating system.” Of particular note, the report said the headset is being designed as a standalone model — that is a headset that does not rely on an iPhone for display purpose. Even more important, it reportedly will be designed to operate without being tethered to a phone either, sporting its own chip, memory and presumably internet connection built into the headset.
T288 also has a tentative delivery date that indicates it’s not coming anytime soon. Apple is said to be aiming to have technology ready for an augmented-reality headset in 2019 that could ship a product as early as 2020.
Reports of Apple working on an augmented reality headset first emerged in 2016, but as is traditional for the legendarily secretive company, it has never once confirmed that report. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook started talking up AR as a technology in September 2016 before Apple itself publicly revealed its first AR support via ARKit, a tool for developers to create augmented reality experiences for iOS.
Apple is claimed to want to bring to market “a breakthrough product to succeed the iPhone,” but that will be a large challenge given how rapidly the market is already developing. Products from Microsoft Corp., Google Inc. and other suppliers already making an impact. Apple would be coming to the party quite late, but as history showed with the iPhone rapid dominance in the existing market of smartphones, the company could still have a big impact.
