We need a new Mac model …
For Apple Vision Pro and Spatial Computing
Lately, I have been using my Apple Vision Pro (AVP) more frequently on my desktop. As you can see above screen capture from my AVP, the background is a beach in Bora Bora (Tahiti) and I have my Mac Virtual Display in the middle with a video (copyright protected) on the right showing the current US Open Women’s Single Semi Final match between Jessica Pegula and Karolina Muchova (on another native AVP application), and a Youtube video (running on Junos, a native AVP application).
Of course, I am not in Tahiti but at home, sitting at my desk on a swiveling chair with a keyboard and mouse right in front of me, and my Mac Studio at the side (together with a 32-inch monitor). I use the swivel chair to turn right to watch the tennis match and turn left to check up on some YouTube videos (during the change of ends). And back to the middle to do my work (editing this article). I also have speakers with music from my Mac. This allows me to know my center position easily.
You might not appreciate this until you experience the AVP yourself. But the above is how large I can set my bird photos to look in the AVP Mac virtual display. The screen image above from AVP covers the entire field of view in my eyes. So, for photographers, this is like having a huge monitor to examine the pixels of their images.
Compare this with multiple display setups done by some folks. They might have multiple computers (PCs and game consoles) and laptops. The multiple displays would take up significant desktop space and there will be cabling complexities to manage to ensure all the devices and accessories connect properly. With just a Mac and AVP, you only need a small desk (plus a swivel chair), a keyboard and a mouse, and a few dangling cables.
With AVP, you can set up this way of working anywhere, whether in your office, Starbucks, or any location where you feel safe. But you need a Mac, if you want to have the full power and all your documents and data. But now, the smallest Mac you can bring with you is the Macbook Air or Macbook Pro (both have 13-inch displays), and that would be rather heavy to carry around together with the AVP and a keyboard. So we need a new Mac.
We need a portable Mac that has no screen. The Mac will have HDMI or USB Type C ports that can easily connect to monitors and projectors, but we’ll mostly use its Wifi and Bluetooth to connect with AVP. [ Currently, it is easier to do this if your Mac is connected to a display (or using the laptop screen in the Macbook). Otherwise, you have to do the first sign-in when your machine boots up without a screen (just type your password without seeing the keystrokes on a screen). You need to sign in before you can connect the Mac Virtual Display with AVP ]. This Mac needs to be battery-powered and should allow changing of the battery while the Mac is in suspension. This is a feature I loved in my previous Apple Powerbook G4 (15-inch). We can hot-swap the battery.
We also need a Mac to do more powerful Spatial Computing. Currently, the AVP is more like an iPad, a computer that is single-task-oriented and supports workloads without heavy computations. I have talked about the possibilities of Spatial Computing in an earlier article. We would need computers that can run more sophisticated workloads to use with AVP and this would require more CPU cores and GPUs than what the AVP can provide. [ Note that at the moment, you cannot operate a workload on a Mac and have the graphical output displayed directly on the AVP. ]
This Mac will also get rid of other elements that are not needed. No webcam, no keyboard and trackpad, no fan, and no touch ID, and would cost less than any MacBook. The battery may be fastened to the unit or be attached like in the AVP, but it most certainly needs to be charged using USB-C.
This Mac must support Apple Intelligence. This means it should have the modern M series CPUs. As with the modern M series Macs, it must be able to operate at low power, so you can walk around with it in your backpack or pocket, and speak with it with your AirPods on your ears.
Another reason why we need this Mac is the need for more power. AVP today needs to ensure a tradeoff between performance and power efficiency. So with this Mac that has more memory, disk space, and cores, we can then run Pro apps much better.
A possible visual model of this Mac might be a slim-down version of a Mac Mini or an Apple TV, small enough to carry in our pocket or backpack. Maybe we can call this model Mac Micro or µMac (read as miu Mac). This would be a new computer model that is going to cause a massive change in the laptop market as more competitors copy what Apple does, especially with the many me-too virtual displays or headsets that are copying the AVP.
You will also need a portable keyboard to bring with you. There are plenty of Bluetooth keyboards available today and I have a foldable Bluetooth keyboard that I pack with my AVP carry bag. You can probably pack the new Mac Micro in the same bag. Here’s a picture of my bag with an Apple TV (to pretend to be the µMac):
Would you consider buying this µMac? Tell Apple. I want it too.
PS: Apple may have some other ideas as well, look at this keyboard-with-a-computer patent by Apple. Also, I wrote this article entirely on my Mac Studio with my AVP while editing the document.
