Apple's next product will be called Apple Reality. (Probably.)

The best clue is the apparent name of their next operating system: "realityOS"

Hi-rez mockup by Antonio De Rosa based on low-rez leak.

The best guess for the branding of Apple's forthcoming mixed-reality platform is: Apple Reality.

The reason is simple: Apple's most recent naming convention uses hardware platform brands in the operating system names: 

Apple Watch: watchOS
Apple iPad: ipadOS
Apple Mac: macOS
Apple TV: tvOS

So, logically — Apple Reality: realityOS

(The main exception is that the iPhone OS is no longer called "iphoneOS," but is instead shortened to “iOS.")

Recently, references to "realityOS" and "rOS" have been discovered in pre-release iOS 13 builds, GitHub repos and even in App Store upload logs. 

Rens Verhoeven @renssies

Uh what is Apple’s RealityOS doing in the App Store upload logs? AR/VR confirmed?

Steve Troughton-Smith @stroughtonsmith

“#if TARGET_FEATURE_REALITYOS” Well then. This at least confirms it 1) has its own OS & binaries, and 2) has a realityOS Simulator https://t.co/6a25kWshXR

Nicolás Álvarez @nicolas09F9

@zhuowei @stroughtonsmith Apple force-pushed the repo to hide this but someone had grabbed the commit hash already... https://t.co/T7nRnEmSyv

matthewdavis.eth @IAmMatthewDavis

Looks like #Apple just accidentally confirmed #RealityOS. 🥽 Whoops! github.com/apple-oss-dist…

The GitHub repo even references a realityOS simulator, no doubt so that developers can test realityOS apps. 

Apple owns the trademarks for “RealityKit” and “Reality Composer,” which sounds like an SDK for a platform called “Reality,” and an end-user tool for creating content for a platform called “Reality.”

Leaks and speculation suggest that Apple will ship its initial augmented reality glasses in the form of virtual reality glasses. Like the iPhone, which captures a real-time video of your physical view and superimposes virtual objects upon it, the glasses will also have cameras that capture real-time video and add digital content to it. 

Although Apple is rightly more excited about augmented reality than virtual reality, its first glasses will also enable VR. 

A later, more advanced product will superimpose virtual content on top of your natural view through clear lenses. The ultimate goal is a product that look just like conventional eyeglasses and sunglasses, but which are in fact augmented reality glasses. Give Apple a few more years for that one. 

The Apple Reality platform will be powerful and expensive. Respected analyst Ming-chi Kuo says it will be as powerful as a MacBook Pro. Tech news site The Information reported on the existence of prototypes that pointed to two 8K displays. I believe that's overkill on both battery drain and price, and predict Apple Reality glasses will have two 4k displays at most. 

13 things you need to know about Apple's mixed reality headset

The 4 amazing new things we just learned about Apple's 'iGlasses'

Apple's old target for shipping was this year. But leaks and credible rumors point to next year for the release. 

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Mike’s List of Brilliantly Bad Ideas

1. Folding phone furniture. Why, Japan? Why?

Japan’s Thanko catalog is now selling their new “Folding sleep cushion Z” product, which is a piece of furniture designed for using your smartphone. Because holding your head up is hard.

2. Fashion brand rolls out digital model, customers hate it

UK fashion brand PrettyLittleThing has started to phase out human models for their catalog in favor of "virtual" models — CGI images of fake women wearing their real clothes. They're running a contest for naming the first fake model, whom they say will be an "influencer.” Whoever wins will be themselves turned into a fake model for the site. Like The Stepford Wives. But when the fake-model initiative was rolled out on their Instagram feed, the comments turned overwhelmingly negative. Is this the beginning of a backlash against fake everything?

3. Giant nasal-cavity filters are for people who find masks “uncomfortable”

Jeff Steck @GazEtc

If you find a mask "uncomfortable and/or unsightly," simply insert these air filters up your nose. Patent no. 11235184

4. This waterproof smartphone case lets you take split water photos

SJPro’s Smartphone Mobile Mini Dome is a waterproof case for your phone, but with a fantastic twist: It enables you to take split photos, where part of the picture is in the water and part is out of the water. It's perfect for your Caribbean snorkeling vacation or bathtub-themed OnlyFans.

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Mike’s List of Shameless Self Promotions

1. Will the Metaverse usher in a universe of security challenges?

2. Tear up your remote work policy and start over (From my new “Future of Work” newsletter! Subscribe free here)

3. Can Google be trusted?

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