What’s Coming In VisionOS 2?

ByJim Miller

Apple is set to make several software announcements next week at WWDC, focusing mainly on iOS 18 and AI technologies. Additionally, this year's keynote will feature the first significant update for the Vision Pro: visionOS 2.

Here's what to look forward to in visionOS 2 when it launches next Monday.

What's New? Apple's Latest Native Apps

When the Vision Pro was released in February, it came with several built-in visionOS apps from Apple like Safari, TV, Music, and Mindfulness.

However, many of the included first-party apps were only available in compatibility mode, meaning they were designed for iPad but could run on Vision Pro in a special mode.

What to expect from visionOS 2

The following Apple apps are not yet fully adapted to visionOS:

PodcastsVoice Memos
StocksNews
ShortcutsHome
BooksMaps
RemindersCalendar

Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple intends to upgrade at least some of these apps to be fully native in visionOS 2.

It would be ideal if all Apple apps became fully native with visionOS 2, but we can expect that at least some of the most popular apps mentioned will be upgraded this year.

Live Captions for Every Voice and Conversation

Live Captions were introduced last month on Global Accessibility Awareness Day and will be included in visionOS 2. This feature allows users to see real-time captions for everything happening around them.

Apple explains that visionOS will have Live Captions across the system to assist everyone, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing, by providing captions for spoken dialogue during live conversations and audio from apps. 

This feature is crucial for the deaf and hard of hearing and could also be incredibly helpful for other users who like having captions to follow along with spoken words.

Is Reordering Apps Considered Low-Hanging Fruit?

Although he didn't say much, Gurman's comment that visionOS 2 will “address missing features from the first version” suggests that this update will fix many basic issues that likely should have been included at launch but weren't.

A major example is the ability to reorder apps on the Home screen. It would be quite unexpected if users had to wait for another entire update cycle just to get such a simple feature.

What to expect from visionOS 2

The Role of Respiration Tracking in Mindfulness Practices

Tim Hardwick from MacRumors has found new code in the visionOS Mindfulness app. This code suggests that respiration tracking might be added to the Vision Pro in the next software update.

It's not certain if this feature will work on its own using the Vision Pro's cameras and sensors, or if it will need an Apple Watch, which already has respiration tracking. We should learn more soon.