Apple Vision Pro: Researchers warn of side effects on the brain
The Apple Vision Pro has been available in US Apple Stores since the beginning of February 2024. Like other VR headsets, it uses so-called passthrough video technology. However, a Stanford researcher is now warning against wearing the glasses for too long at a time.
Even before the official sales start in the USA, the Apple Vision Pro received much praise. It’s unclear what the $3,500 VR glasses are supposed to be for. What is clear again: Like the Meta Quest 3, the Apple Vision Pro is intended to lead users into virtual reality and possibly replace the smartphone.
However, how this will all happen is still being determined. But while the VR headset was initially highly praised for its technical capabilities, criticism is now increasing—the reason: the so-called passthrough video technology.
Apple Vision Pro: Stanford researcher warns of effects on the brain
Like the Meta Quest 3 and Meta Quest Pro, the Apple Vision Pro uses passthrough video technology. Specifically, this means cameras and other sensors record images of the outside world and display them on the device.
This creates a virtual environment that mimics reality and displays apps and other virtual elements. The goal: Apple and Meta hope this virtual reality will be so fascinating that people will work, live, and spend their free time there.
However, researchers are now warning about the consequences of wearing VR headsets like the Apple Vision Pro for too long. The fear: The devices could change the way we perceive the world. Jeremy Bailenson, head of the Virtual Human Interaction Lab at Stanford University:
Not only can these headsets add things to the real world, but they can also delete them. We will see that the commonality disappears when these headsets are used in public. People will be in the same place while experiencing visually different versions of the world. We will lose common ground.
VR headsets: The side effects of virtual reality
According to a team of researchers led by Bailenson, our brains would undergo a massive, society-wide experiment using VR headsets. As a result, our perception would rewire the world around us, making it even more challenging to distinguish between fiction and reality.
Short-term side effects from virtual reality are already known. For example, people tend to misjudge distances after wearing a VR headset and being in a virtual reality. First of all, this is no surprise.
Even in three-dimensional reality, our ability to determine what is how close or how far away is influenced by numerous factors. However, VR headsets and virtual environments make this worse. This can be particularly problematic if you then take part in real traffic.
These side effects can be made even worse by so-called object distortion. Specifically, this means that things change their size and shape in virtual reality. These distortions can subsequently affect perception in reality because video playback cannot keep up with the processing speed and fidelity of the eyes and brain.