Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is just around the corner — it will take place on June 5 and run through June 9. For those well-versed in Apple, this is the big mid-year event where it reveals the big software updates coming to all its gadgets (including iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and more) in the fall.
Apple isn't known for announcing a ton of new hardware at WWDC, but it's also not out of the question. At last year's WWDC, for example, Apple announced the M2 MacBook Air. And in years prior, the Mac Pro (in 2019) and the original full-sized HomePod (in 2017) were also announced.
This year, as you might've heard, there are a lot of rumors swirling around and it's actually expected that Apple will announce a bunch of new hardware. That includes the highly-anticipated AR/VR headset and the first 15-inch MacBook Air.
The Reality Pro, Apple's first AR/VR headset
Apple's first mixed-reality headset, rumored to be called the "Reality Pro," is finally expected to be revealed at this year's WWDC this year. According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the headset will have two 4K micro-OLED displays that will cover both your eyes and have a bunch of cameras facing outwards to pick up the outside. The idea is that the headset will overlay graphics on the real world for an AR experience or have the screens be completely immersive and block out the outside world for a VR experience.
As for price, it's expected that each headset is going to sell for a hefty $3,000. That's an order of magnitude more expensive than the Meta Quest 2, and even more than the cost of buying Valve's Index headset and a PC to run it. Of course, neither of those offer augmented reality experiences.
While the headset may very well be announced at WWDC, don't expect it for sale soon. This is an advance announcement to get developers to work on apps and other software, much in the same way that the Apple Watch was announced months prior to its actual release.
We may also get a bigger MacBook Air
The other big rumor surrounding WWDC is that Apple will be revealing a 15-inch MacBook Air. Apple currently sells two different MacBook Airs — one with only design and an M1 chip and one with the new design and an M2 chip — but both have 13-inch displays. If Apple does announce a 15-inch model, it will be the biggest-screen MacBook Air ever and it would slot nicely in between the current 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros.
According to analyst Ross Young, the 15-inch MacBook Air would share a similar new-age design as the current M2 MacBook Pros and M2 MacBook Airs — meaning it would have a more edge-to-edge display, an upgraded 1080p webcam and a MagSafe charging port.
