Showing posts with label gadgets news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gadgets news. Show all posts

Apple In The Hotseat After Reviewer Confirms Its Vision Pro’s Eyesight Feature Doesn’t Work

 For months, we’ve seen tech giant Apple speak about how its Vision Pro entails features that set it far apart from all others in the industry.


Now, a reviewer is casting serious doubt on the iPhone maker’s claims after adding that one of the key features of the new Vision Pro Eyesight does not work. And that’s shocking considering how much Apple has marketed the product as one of the best in the industry.

When you consider a wide array of real-life examples, you’ll find how Apple has always spoken about this technology being one of the best out there. But in reality, one reviewer says that’s far from the truth.

CEO Tim Cook took out the time to argue about how AR is far more superior and entertaining than the world of VR. The former was better as it did not isolate individuals from the community arising around it. Moreover, this is where the entire EyeSight product range came into existence from this notion as it ensured users were well aware and engaged in everything in their surroundings.

When an individual is approached by another during the whole Vision Pro endeavor, you’ll see it activate the Pass Through initiative so they can be seen. The same is the case with EyeSight as a true or clear representation is witnessed through the viewer’s perspective.

But Apple is not paying heed to all of the criticism being rolled out in its direction. It’s definitely something extra that is being hurled in the company’s direction after the launch took center stage. One reason could be linked to the fact that there are hardly any reviews or tutorials that showcase what more can be expected so now, websites are slowly but surely transforming into gossip areas instead of true places where technology should be promoted instead of ridiculed.

The VP for the company’s human interface domain explained how this feature is doing great in terms of adding something useful and new. He says that the goal of the endeavor is to ensure those wearing the product feel at ease and are not weary of what’s going on in the surroundings.

This is the reason why the tech giant has spent millions to ensure guests remain comfortable and also to ensure it’s all natural and light, quite like what you’d see in normal life.

Covering the eye region might seem to be a great place to start but that really does take quite a bit away, the company mentioned in terms of connecting with others. So they worked long and hard to make sure the concept of this offering was such that it retained links to the real world out there today.
But the reviewer in question is not someone who does not know his tech. It’s none other than Jason Cross from Macworld who shed light on how the feature is so poor that it hardly works, causing him to label it as a useless offering.

What’s even more shocking is how it’s not just him that feels this way. There were plenty of sample images extracted from videos that were clicked by other reviewers and those that used the Vision Pro too.

Such EyeSight displays had a lot of issues and they rendered the matter to be one that was blurry. This meant it failed to serve its main purpose and the quality of the front display is what really impacted the lenticular lens too.

The display in question is quite narrow and it’s not even the half size of the headset’s front side. Moreover, the brightness is greatly reduced and it’s shocking because the headset in general is quite glossy in esthetics that bright highlights are witnessed from all aspects.

If you wish to see a person’s eyes correctly, the room should be lit dimly. This is the point where there would be pass-throughs that transform it all into grainy messes and that’s what reviewers are not happy with either.
Can the matter be fixed through software updates, as has been the case with Apple’s other leading range of products? We don’t think so and we feel it might need new hardware to begin with.

Apple's Pass Through feature in Vision Pro Eyesight aims for seamless integration, but reviewers highlight issues with clarity and functionality.
Photo: Unsplash / @gronemo

Five gadgets with great lenses


In with the old school 
 Putting advanced tech into traditional-looking hardware is guaranteed to initiate mild euphoria in people of a certain age – my age, in fact, if we’re going to be specific about this. Nikon’s latest Z-mount mirrorless camera presents as an old-school F-mount: pseudo-leatherette exterior, buttons and switches inspired by 50-year-old models but given modern functionality, brass dials destined to take on a gentle patina over time, a ker-chunk mechanical shutter. The classic black version is unashamedly retro, but for those who yearn for a more flamboyant collision of classic and modern, it comes in six more colourways including Moss Green and Sunset Orange.


A camera that takes its design cues from the past will inevitably suffer an ergonomic hit; while it’s substantially lighter than its professional big sisters the Z8 and Z9, the Z f is not necessarily more comfortable in the hand. But that’s a minor negative in a sea of positives. For those (like myself) who experience low-level unease when manually adjusting camera settings, full auto mode does some spectacular heavy lifting and essentially plonks a supercharged compact camera in your hand: very quick start-up time plus brilliant results. If you already speak fluent ISO/aperture/shutter speed, you can assume as much control as you like. But if you want to learn, the Z f acquaints you with the basics and encourages you to think creatively about the images you’re making. It’s a well-forged alliance of new and old. On one hand, you’ve got slots for both SD and microSD cards, a vari-angle monitor for vloggers, super-smooth slo-mo video and automatic subject detection (people, animals, aircraft…) On the other, it has a deep-tone monochrome mode that’s capable of stunning black-and-white pictures with barely any effort – the kind of bold shots you’d have worked hard with a red filter to achieve back in the days of film. If you grew up using such cameras, the Z f will prompt a gentle smile of recognition. If you didn’t, you’ll simply be enjoying semi-pro power in a quite beautiful package. 
Nikon Z f, from £2,299 body-only

Instant gratification



Polaroid I-2 Instant Camera, £599.99 

Polaroid’s journey has been extraordinary, from hugely celebrated (both practically and artistically) to almost obsolete and back again. It’s faintly preposterous that this new, high-end, three-lens, autofocusing integral film camera even exists, given how easy it is to snap high-quality pictures on our far more portable smartphones. But as soon as you slot in a chunky cartridge of i-type film, those eight shots become rather precious.





The device works seamlessly with the accompanying app (I hardly ever say that) and the resulting pictures are now pinned to my office noticeboard: shimmering colour, sharp detail and a beautiful bokeh blur.

 Polaroid I-2 Instant Camera, £599.99

A level head





DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Creator Combo, £619 
Having experienced the indignity of trying to assemble and align an errant smartphone gimbal in public, I’m thankful for DJI’s compact, all-in-one camera-gimbal flagship, which makes such antics look laughably old-fashioned. This package comes with two handles, mic transmitter, wide-angle lens, tripod and other goodies. Three gimbal modes offer flexibility when filming (eg, Follow mode for selfies) and its Active Track feature will doggedly follow whichever subject is in focus. The 2in touchscreen is adequate enough for monitoring, but the true majesty is revealed when playing back on a big screen: smooth 4K footage with vibrant colours.
 DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Creator Combo, £619

Reach for the stars

Amateur astronomy can involve a steep learning curve. There’s plenty of tech out there for urban stargazers, but you have to know where to look, when to look and what for. Unistellar’s newest model is designed for those with little knowledge but boundless curiosity; the companion app advises where the most interesting stellar objects currently are and what they’re up to on a given night, while high-precision Nikon optics guide you towards them. Multi-depth technology captures low brightness objects (nebulae and galaxies) as well as high (the moon, planets), and does a great job of autofocusing on these small dots despite the expanse of darkness surrounding them. Unistellar Odyssey Pro, from £3,499

Your next project




Leica Cine 1 projector, 120in, £8,995

 Large, high-spec TVs come with two annoyances: getting them up a spiral staircase and reflections on the screen. Both these are resolved by short-throw projecting onto an ALR (ambient light rejecting) screen, and the Cine 1 demonstrates this to wonderful effect. It’s Leica’s tardy follow-up to the world’s first mass-produced projector (the Uleja) launched in 1926. That device is now a museum piece, but the Cine 1 is a true living-room statement, a sizeable 15kg unit with 50W Dolby Atmos surround sound. While cheaper short-throws can project at different sizes but suffer an attendant dip in visual quality, the 120in version of the Cine 1 projects at 120in alone, but in breathtaking detail. Leica Cine 1, 120in, £8,995 (without screen) @rhodri