The Apple Vision Pro announcement made a huge splash at the beginning of June, marking the arrival of the iPhone into XR. While its release won’t occur until 2024, Apple is keen to get developers on board as soon as possible. This will begin shortly, with developers able to apply for an Apple Vision Pro dev kit in July.
A new landing page will give devs the chance to apply for support across a range of programs. If you already have an app on the App Store you can: “Request a compatibility evaluation from App Review to get a report on your app or game’s appearance and how it behaves in visionOS.” Apple will also be running Vision Pro developer labs where devs will have access to direct support from Apple, enabling them to test and optimize their apps and games. Currently, Vision Pro developer labs are run in Cupertino, London, Munich, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo.
Apple Vision Pro Dev Kit
When it comes to the developer kits, Apple says that devs will be able: “to quickly build, iterate, and test on Apple Vision Pro, so your app or game will be ready to deliver amazing experiences.”
While applications will seemingly open in July there’s no indication of when Apple plans on shipping units. Or how many will actually be available? It is also unclear as to whether current App Store developers will get preferential treatment over XR creators.
Before all of that occurs, you can head to the visionOS developer website to start downloading several tools. These include the visionOS SDK, as well as updated Xcode, Simulator, and Reality Composer Pro programs. Xcode is your starting point for most development, where you can: “Add a visionOS target to your existing project or build an entirely new app.” While Reality Composer Pro is designed to make previewing and preparing 3D content for your visionOS apps easier.
With the Apple Vision Pro price a sizable $3,499 USD it’s not exactly a mass-market device. Even so, Apple will want plenty of third-party devs on board prior to launch.
Are you excited about Apple’s first foray into XR? Let us know in the comments below.