Vision Pro, iOS 17, 15″ MacBook Air: Everything you need to know from Apple WWDC 2023

Well, that was certainly a lot of Apple news to take in. 

This year’s WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) came and went, but not before Apple dropped a slew of upgrades, updates, new features, and entirely new products on us. The whole event clocked in at over two hours in length and the Apple team never let up on the stream of news.

But don’t feel overwhelmed. Mashable is here to break down exactly what the biggest takeaways from the event are. 

Vision Pro: Apple’s headset is real and…expensive

Let’s start with the obvious: The Apple Vision Pro.

Apple finally announced its virtual reality slash augmented reality slash mixed reality headset. A VR or AR product from Apple has been rumored for years and word had been spreading that WWDC 2023 was where it would finally make its debut. Apple delivered the news at the very end of the event, as its now-infamous “one more thing” announcement.

Three, four, nine, nine.
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The first thing you should know about Vision Pro is the price. It’s expensive. When Vision Pro becomes available early next year, it will cost $3,499. That puts it out of the reach of affordability for a large swath of Apple customers. 

But as for what Vision Pro actually is, it looks like Apple is aiming to provide an entire Mac in a wearable headset. The company is describing it as a “spatial computer(opens in a new tab)” because the headset screen is see-through. When a user puts on the headset, they can actually still see their surroundings. The apps and windows appear visually within the space that the user is already occupying. From there, they can open applications to view new visual worlds…or just open up a Word document.

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There were some interesting positives, like an early partnership with Disney to bring Disney+ experiences to Vision Pro. And there were some real negatives — like, well, the price, and a two-hour battery life.

Meta hasn’t been too successful with its Metaverse hopes and dreams, but Mark Zuckerberg also doesn’t have the experience in building successful physical products like Apple. Let’s see if Tim Cook can pull it off.

New Macs

Following an entirely brand new product line for Apple with the Vision Pro, the company had some news to break about its existing ones, namely Macs.

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The MacBook Air line of laptops is getting a new 15″ model powered by Apple’s very own M2 silicon chip. It’s pretty much the same as the already available M2 MacBook Air models but with more screen space. But 15″ does seem to be the sweet spot when it comes to laptop sizes. So if the thin, lightweight aspects of a MacBook Air appeals to you but the previous screen sizes were just too small, this might be the computer for you. It starts at $1,299.

Apple also announced updates to the Mac Studio, bringing the M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips to the desktop line of computers. And, if you haven’t heard of the M2 Ultra yet, that’s because Apple introduced it at WWDC 2023 too! The company called it a “monster of a chip”, as it’s its most powerful silicon chip yet. The new Mac Studio computers start at $1,999 and that’s obviously the one without the M2 Ultra chip.

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But, that wasn’t it when it came to Macs. Apple had one more updated line and it was the model that most needed a refresh…

Hello, M2 Ultra. Goodbye, Intel.

At WWDC 2023, Apple finally announced a new Mac Pro — aka the “cheese grater” computer.

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That’s right, the most expensive of all the Macs is finally getting Apple’s silicon chip. The Mac Pro, last updated in 2019, was the last of Apple’s line of computers left without it. The base Mac Pro comes with the M2 Ultra chip, just in case there was any question of it being Apple’s most professional level computer. It also has a 24-core CPU, a 60-core GPU, and a 32-core Neural Engine, plus 64GB of unified memory and 1TB of SSD storage. All that for a whopping $6,999.

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But the big takeaway here is the end of an era for Apple and Intel’s relationship, which had began back in 2006. With this Mac Pro, there is now not a single current Apple product that isn’t powered by the company’s very own silicon chip. 

iOS 17

While most of today’s news came from Apple’s new physical product lines, there were plenty of software updates too.

iPhone users have a ton of new features to look forward to with iOS 17. The core iPhone apps especially — like Phone, Messages, and FaceTime — are all receiving big updates with this new iOS. For example, users will be able to receive real-time transcriptions of voicemails via the new Live Voicemail feature. Users will also be able to customize the design of how their screen looks for each individual in their contacts list when they call with Contact Posters. If your contact doesn’t pick up a FaceTime call, you’ll be able to leave them a video message instead. 

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In Messages, users will be able to see transcriptions of audio messages as well as turn Live Photos into Stickers for the app. They can also send real-time, automated text message “check-in” updates to inform family members and loved ones when they arrive at a certain location.

AirDrop is also getting an upgrade with quicker and easier sharing of media and other files. Users can exchange files automatically by just putting each others’ iPhone in close proximity to each other. And contacts can now be exchanged in the same way with the new NameDrop feature.

Standby is another newly announced feature that brings real-time live monitoring and status updates for everything from the time and the weather to sports scores to your iPhone’s screen when you’re not actively using it.

Apple’s own Journal app

Deserving of its own separate mention is Apple’s latest iOS app: Journal.

Apple already has its own Calendar app, its own Notes app, a Weather app… the list goes on. Now, Apple is bringing its very own journaling app to the iPhone.

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According to Apple, Journal uses machine learning to generate prompts and other writing suggestions in order to help users keep their journal up-to-date. Journal will bring in photos, workouts, interactions and travel history into the app as well.

It’s not every day that Apple decides to corner a niche app category with its own proprietary app. The Journal category is a popular one in the App Store so it’ll certainly be interesting to see if Apple’s own Journal affects current leaders in the space, like Day One. 

iPadOS 17

If you’re an iPad owner that’s swooning over the new iOS 17 for iPhone, you’re in luck! Many of those new features are coming to iPadOS 17 too. And iPhone features that previously weren’t available for the iPad, like the customizable lock screen and Health app, are coming to iPadOS 17 too.

But iPad owners are also getting some tablet-specific new updates.

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Apple was big on focusing on PDFs when it came to the iPad at WWDC. With the latest new iPadOS, your iPad will be able to identify fields within a PDF document and quickly fill in details such as names and addresses straight from the Contacts app. PDFs will also now appear in full-screen on the iPad as well. 

Interactive widgets are also being introduced with iPadOS 17. This allows for customizable widgets to appear on your iPad home screen and display real-time content and updates, without the need to open that specific app.

WatchOS 10

Speaking of widgets, the Apple Watch will soon be all about the widgets. WatchOS 10 completely redesigns the Apple Watch interface to focus on users’ Smart Stack of widgets, like upcoming meetings, tasks, and even your favorite podcasts.

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As usual, the Apple Watch focuses on health-related information and WatchOS 10 is no different. There are new ways for cyclists to connect their Apple Watch to their Bluetooth-enabled bike sensors to track important health stats. And along with updates for runners and hikers, WatchOS 10 brings new mental health features such as the mindfulness app, too.

macOS Sonoma

Last, but certainly not least, macOS is getting an update too! Updates for Apple product operating systems all around!

The latest Mac operating system is macOS Sonoma. And just like iPadOS and WatchOS, macOS Sonoma is going all in on widgets too. Widgets will no longer live on a separate screen on your Mac Mini or MacBook. Users will now be able to put their favorite widgets right on their desktop.

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Teleconference was another big focus for Apple with the new macOS Sonoma as demonstrated in a new Presenter Overlay feature, which allows a user to host a presentation with a slideshow displaying behind their video. One interesting aspect is that it doesn’t require a specific app. According to Apple, the feature integrates with popular teleconferencing services like Zoom.

Safari is also getting an update. A new feature will allow users to split up their personal web surfing from their work browsing with profiles. New privacy options will allow users to block web trackers with privacy browsing. Users will also be able to create standalone web apps with Safari that can put their favorite websites right in their MacOS dock.

Other noteworthy odds and ends 

As Apple would say, there’s one (or a few) more things that deserve a mention.

Apple TV is getting an update with tvOS 17. One important feature: A Find My Remote option for those Apple TV users who constantly misplace that tiny little remote control. But the big Apple TV update is FaceTime. 

Using the Continuity Camera feature that turns an iPhone or iPad into a webcam, users will be able to take FaceTime calls via Apple TV and use their big screen to stream calls to a room full of people.

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AirPods are also getting a small but notable update with Adaptive Audio, Personalized Volume, and Conversation Awareness. Adaptive Audio “blends Transparency mode and Active Noise Cancellation” in order to provide the greatest sound based on a user’s surroundings. Personalized Volume uses machine learning to match a user up with their listening preferences when they put their AirPods on. And Conversation Awareness will automatically lower Airpods’ volume when a user starts talking. 

And, finally, I leave you all with gaming news.

Yes, gaming news…at an Apple event.

This is really part of the MacOS update, but I felt it deserved a breakout of its own. Gamers have so often been left out of the conversation when it comes to Mac. It’s been clear that Apple has ceded this ground to PCs long ago.

But maybe, just maybe, that’s about to change: MacOS Sonoma has a gaming mode, which basically prioritizes CPU and GPU cycles in order to provide the greatest gameplay experience. It also lowers controller and speaker latency over Bluetooth. And, Apple said, there is a new toolkit for gaming developers to help them port over PC games more easily and effectively.

Congratulations! You made it to the end here. Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and even a new product in Vision Pro – there was more than enough to discuss from WWDC 2023.