Apple's $3,500 face computer has been on shelves for a while now, and the app situation has been... a journey.
Remember when everyone swore the killer app was virtual meetings?
Turns out strapping a goggles-shaped space heater to your face to attend a 9 AM standup is not the productivity flex Tim Cook hoped for.
But something funny is happening in the Vision Pro app store lately.
The downloads aren't going to the metaverse office suites or the immersive sports packages that got all the keynote love.
They're going to apps that let you look at things.
Take the sudden obsession with spatial photos and videos.
Users are converting old iPhone memories into immersive scenes and then just... sitting there.
One Reddit thread titled "I watched my dog who passed in 2019 walk around my living room" has more upvotes than most Apple keynotes.
People are paying premium prices to feel feelings in 3D, and honestly, that tracks for a device that already costs more than a used Honda Civic.
The other surprise hit category is "ambient environments"—basically fancy wallpapers that make your living room look like a lake in Norway or a moon base.
Users report staring at fake rain for 40 minutes and calling it self-care.
In fairness, at this price point, you'd better be getting some emotional value, because you're certainly not getting a social life.
There's also a growing niche of apps that are just... windows.
An aquarium that never needs cleaning and can't die on you.
It's the tamagotchi principle applied to a $3,500 headset, and people are eating it up like it's the last app on Earth.
Indie studios are pivoting from "immersive productivity platforms" to "hey, want to watch a slightly better version of a nature documentary while lying in bed?" And you know what?
Sometimes the future is just a very expensive way to watch clouds.
The bigger question is whether any of this justifies the price tag.
Long answer: also no, but the people buying it aren't doing math, they're doing vibes.
And vibes, my friends, cannot be benchmarked. **Our take:** The Vision Pro is turning into the world's most expensive meditation aid, and Apple will absolutely take that win.
Final Thoughts
Sometimes the killer app isn't a feature—it's a feeling you could get for free by looking out a window, except this one has better resolution and fewer neighbors.