Apple Vision Pro gets an iFixit teardown

Launched last week, in the United States only, the Cupertino kit is priced at $3,499.

You can read a full description of the “insane disassembly process” here, which also includes a lot of information about the technology and principles behind the EyeSight display and its lenticular lenses (displaying different images when viewed from different angles).

Weight

The device’s weight (with the battery the Vision Pro weighs over a kilogram), and its balance and spread, is a topic of (generally positive) discussion. iFixit writes:

“The battery pack alone weighs 353 grams and is made of three iPhone-sized batteries, delivering a grand total of 35.9 Wh, more than double an iPhone 15 Pro’s 17.3 Wh. The cells themselves are 184 g apiece, surprisingly only about half the weight of the full battery pack. To get inside, we had to soften some perimeter adhesive and release a set of single-use metal clips—then twist open Torx screws galore.”

One downside is that is the proprietary battery cable connection used (it magnetically snaps into place and then twists to lock) and the plug at the other end of the cable is “unforgivable”.

“Instead of terminating with a USB-C plug, it connects to the battery pack with what looks like a proprietary oversized Lightning connector, which you release using a paperclip or SIM-removal tool.”

EyeSight display

While appreciating a lot of the tech involved, the iFixit team focuses on the EyeSight display.

“So why, when this thing clearly took years and years to create—and is Apple’s latest bet on the future of computing—did Apple fail to live up to their own standards with the EyeSight screen?

“It’s dim, it’s low-resolution, and it adds a lot of bulk, weight, complexity, and expense to the most weight-sensitive part of the headset. Did they finally hit the drop dead date and miss their targeted performance? Could it be a late-stage manufacturing error? Regardless, we’re sure bringing it to market was a difficult decision.”

The final score for the device? iFixit says it is awarding the Vision Pro a provisional repairability score of 4/10 – “could be worse, but repair won’t be easy”.

You can see a video of the teadown of the Apple Vision Pro below:

Our own Engineer In Wonderland added a few thoughts about the device, when it was first announced back in June 2023:

“On the subject of image processing, Apple said it has an M2 chip running visionOS, vision algorithms, and delivering graphics, and a chip called R1 processing input from the cameras, sensors and microphones, and streaming images to the displays.”

“Lidar and a camera provide data for a 3d map of the locality to be created on which displayed content can be overlaid.”

Images: iFixit

See also: Apple went for oleds in Vision Pro