Highlights

• iFixit’s teardown of the Apple Vision Pro uncovers complex internal components.
• Vision Pro’s EyeSight feature highlighted for its innovative yet vulnerable design.
• Concerns raised about device weight and potential repair costs.
• More in-depth analysis promised by iFixit in future teardowns.

The Apple Vision Pro has already been disassembled by the team at iFixit, mere days post-launch.

You would know the iFixit team from their impressive teardown videos of iPhones and other Apple products.

However, the Vision Pro is a different matter altogether given the kind its compact hardware and highly limited availability.

This initial teardown offers a peek under the hood of the highly anticipated device, highlighting its internal components and potential repair complexities.

Apple Vision Pro: iFixit Teardown’s Revelations

The Vision Pro’s EyeSight seems like a repair Achilles’ heel—so many points of failure for a slightly creepy feature. In part one of our teardown, we took a look at how its three-layer display creates that uncanny 3D-ish video of the wearer’s eyes. https://t.co/RqWadVbN9U pic.twitter.com/uYONTB6WMF

— iFixit (@iFixit) February 3, 2024

iFixit’s dismantling process revealed similarities to other Apple products, necessitating the use of a heat gun, numerous screws, and a fair amount of effort to access the inner workings.

One of the standout features examined was the Vision Pro’s EyeSight, which projects a 3D representation of the user’s eyes on the device.

Despite its innovative appeal, iFixit noted this feature’s vulnerability due to its complexity and potential for malfunction, labeling it as somewhat “creepy” due to the extensive technology involved.

Further scrutiny by iFixit raised concerns about certain parts contributing to the device’s weight and the potential costs and challenges associated with future repairs.

This is particularly significant given the early feedback from users and reviewers about the Vision Pro’s display, which some have described as rendering the eyes in a way that is both dim and blurry, detracting from the overall experience.

iFixit to Give More Detailed Look in a Future Teardown

Kyle Wiens, CEO of iFixit, took to Twitter to share insights from the teardown, including images of the Vision Pro stripped of its exterior layers.

This revealed the intricate arrangement of cameras and sensors encircling the device, essential for its AR/VR capabilities.

The brief glimpse into the device’s complexity hinted at the intricate engineering and design efforts Apple has invested in the Vision Pro.

iFixit has signaled that this initial teardown only scratches the surface of the Vision Pro’s complexity.

They’ve promised more detailed examinations in future videos, aiming to explore the “rabbit hole” of the device’s design and functionality further.

This ongoing analysis will be invaluable for understanding the Vision Pro’s reparability, component layout, and the technological advancements that Apple has integrated into its first AR/VR headset offering.

FAQs

What makes the Apple Vision Pro teardown by iFixit significant?

The teardown provides a first look at the internal design and components of the highly anticipated AR/VR headset, revealing both its innovative features and the challenges they present for repairability.

What are the main concerns raised by iFixit regarding the Vision Pro?

iFixit has pointed out the device’s weight, the complexity of features like EyeSight, and potential high costs and difficulties in repairing certain components.

How does the EyeSight feature on the Vision Pro work, according to iFixit?

EyeSight projects a 3D representation of the user’s eyes onto the device, a feature iFixit finds technologically extensive but prone to many points of failure.

What future insights does iFixit plan to offer about the Vision Pro?

iFixit has promised further videos that delve deeper into the device’s design and functionality, aiming to provide a more comprehensive understanding of its complexity.

iFixit Shares Apple Vision Pro Teardown.Details?

The well-known repair website iFixit today shared a written teardown and video teardown of the Apple Vision Pro, offering a look inside the mixed reality headset.

iFixit’s disassembly of the Vision Pro reveals several internal components, including an array of cameras and sensors, fans, lens motors, and more. Unsurprisingly, it appears that opening and repairing the headset will be difficult.

“The EyeSight seems like a repair Achilles’ heel—so many points of failure for a slightly creepy feature,” said iFixit, in an email. “But we’ll give Apple credit where it’s due: the easily replaceable speakers and battery are big repairability wins.”

Vision Pro is powered by an M2 chip with an 8-core CPU, a 10-core GPU, a 16-core Neural Engine, and 16GB of unified memory.

Other specs include up to 1TB of storage, and an all-new R1 chip that “processes input from 12 cameras, five sensors, and six microphones to ensure that content feels like it is appearing right in front of the user’s eyes.”

The publication Wallpaper* had already shared an image of the Vision Pro’s internals on Friday, as part of an exclusive Vision Pro design interview with Apple’s vice president of software design Alan Dye and vice president of hardware design Richard Howarth.

Howarth said Apple designed the Vision Pro with “a lot of flexible materials and soft textures” like the Solo Knit Band so that people “would not only feel physically comfortable wearing it, but also enjoy wearing it around others too.”

Vision Pro launched on Friday in the U.S., and Apple said the headset will be available in additional countries later this year.

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