One of the major focuses of the Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) Worldwide Developer Conference this week is augmented reality. Apple unveiled and demonstrated its new ARKit 2.0 developer suite, but some analysts say AR is not necessarily destined for iPhone and iPod screens.
ARKit is a software toolkit that allows developers to create AR apps for Apple devices. For example, Apple senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi demonstrated an app that allowed iPad users to use AR slingshots to shoot projectiles at on-screen targets, an AR game similar to the popular Angry Birds app.
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While Federighi demonstrated these AR capabilities by holding an iPad at arm’s length, some analysts are speculating that this type of AR technology, and ultimately virtual reality technology, is best suited for the rumored T288 Apple wearable device. In November, Bloomberg reported that Apple has been secretly developing an AR headset as part of a project code-named T288. People familiar with the matter reported that Apple could have T288 wearable devices on the market by 2020 and that these devices could eventually replace the iPhone all together.
While Apple made no mention of the T288 or other wearable devices at its WWDC keynote speech on Monday, its push for more AR capabilities in recent years could be laying the foundation for the T288. Global smartphone sales have shown signs of slowing down in recent quarters, but a new device could jump-start Apple’s hardware business.
Apple has had mixed results on its wearable Apple Watch device since its 2015 launch. But this week, Apple announced that Apple Watch unit sales were up 60 percent in 2017.
“Apple Watch is running away with the wearables space,” Loup Ventures analyst Gene Munster says.
Munster says Apple Watch revenue will grow at above 20 percent annually through 2020 and will account for about 6 percent of total revenue by that time.
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“Apple Watch is gaining momentum because Apple created the computer-on-your-wrist category allowing for significantly more advanced functionality compared to other wearables,” Munster says.
If Apple can leverage its AR technology and create a new wearable device that captures a large part of its existing iPhone customer base, it could be a massive money-maker for long-term shareholders.
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AR Headset Could Be a Game-Changer for Apple Inc. (AAPL) originally appeared on usnews.com
