Apple Granted Patent for Potential Gear VR Killer

[Mark Spoonauer]

Apple has been awarded a patent for a virtual reality headset that would use the iPhone as the display -- just like Samsung's Gear VR.

Apple Granted Patent for Potential Gear VR Killer : Read more

 

[virtualban]

Why do I see this as a roadblock in the path towards VR/AR?

 

[NightLight]

Why is apple given a patent for something that allready clearly exists?
damn patent office!

 

[SkyBill40]

Someone else makes something that's great, been out a while, and gets little fanfare. Apple basically copies the existing design, slaps their logo on it, and is given seemingly universal acclaim as being so innovative and a trendsetter.

I don't get it. I just don't get it.

 

[KenZen2B]

From what is shown (diagram) to be in their patent, there is nothing to indicate that this is for stereo (3D) viewing. The diagram clearly shows a mono display that slides into a viewing holder.

 

[cats_Paw]

So... they patented puting a phone close to your eyes?
Wow, I would have never thought of that! (like.. you know... closing your blinders so that the TV looks like its not there, just the image).

 

[jeremy2020]

Umm..can we stop saying that Apple throwing their logo on something that exists is going to be a 'killer'. Jobs is gone. Deal with it.

 

[maverickmage]

Ugh... Every time an article about Apple patent shows up, it fills me with dread.

 

[Mark Spoonauer]

Someone else makes something that's great, been out a while, and gets little fanfare. Apple basically copies the existing design, slaps their logo on it, and is given seemingly universal acclaim as being so innovative and a trendsetter.

I don't get it. I just don't get it.

I don't think it's as much copying as it is as studying the market and what's working and what's not, then executing. For example, tablets existed long before the iPad, but Apple found a way to make them easier to use. We'll have to see if being a "fast follower" helps in the wearables era, which includes the watch and possibly VR.

 

[SkyBill40]

I see your point, Mark. All we can do is wait and see. While I'm not a fan of Apple's devices, they are rather crafty and slick in their design implementation and making their devices give the appearance of being better than they may actually be. For some, that's all that matters. For others, it's about how well the device works. For everyone else, it's finding the happy medium of both.

Thanks for the response.

 

[Solandri]

Why is apple given a patent for something that allready clearly exists?
damn patent office!

Actually, their patent application pre-dates the Gear VR and Oculus.

The problem with the patent is that it specifies a phone, rather than a display. Head-mounted displays have been around for decades. Using the display on your phone instead of a dedicated display is what I'd call "obvious", and in fact not even an invention. Otherwise you're opening up the door to all sorts of stupid patents like using your TV as a computer monitor, or using a white wall as a projector screen, or using your car's engine as an emergency power generator.

 

[bit_user]

This is lame and the headline is clickbait. If apple ever brings such a product to market, it'd just be a stop-gap measure showing they've been wrong-footed by rapid developments in the tech by Sony, Occulus, and Microsoft. This product would kill nothing.

 

[Steveymoo]

Trollbate article title. Followed by predictably butthurt comments. I am Bill Murray, and this is Groundhog day.