Just a tiny step away from the Uncanny Valley, really.
The Personas function, which enables users to view a digital representation of themselves during conversations, Zoom meetings, and other similar activities, is an essential component of Apple’s Vision Pro VR, which is a spatial computing headset. According to posts on X that were discovered by MacRumors, Apple has made significant improvements to them throughout the course of the most recent version. Initially, they appeared to be a little unsettling. They have been updated to increase their level of realism, making users appear less like impressionist paintings and more like genuine people.
You will be prompted to regain your Persona in order to obtain the “latest appearance updates” once the visionOS 1.1 update has been installed. It appears that this process is carried out in part by removing the headset and pointing it at your face. A majority of users have expressed their opinion that the revised Personas are superior. Visually, they are less blurry and a little bit more realistic, and the proportions appear to have improved.
So, maybe it's just me, but I feel like the visionOS 1.1 beta vastly improves the Persona feature.
— Snazzy Labs (@SnazzyLabs) February 6, 2024
Is it still uncanny and creepy? Yeah, but I don't look like Stalin anymore. pic.twitter.com/uYGUugHFSl
It is important to keep in mind that Personas are a digital representation of the users that are generated by the data collected by the sensors on the headset and a new machine learning algorithm. As a result of their design, they are intended to be a “authentic spatial representation” of a person, which reveals their facial expressions and hand movements. This ensures that you will not appear to be a nerd while participating in group calls.
But if you find yourself in a situation where you need to do that, there is a feature called EyeSight that displays a digital representation of your eyes to other people while you are wearing the Vision Pro. In order to achieve the best possible outcomes, Apple continues to refer to Personas as a beta feature and gives extensive instructions.