The Apple Vision Pro will come with an external battery pack that Apple is considering calling a Magic Battery, according to references spotted by Apple code researcher @aaronp613 who tweeted about it on X / Twitter.
It's been referred to previously as the MagSafe Battery Pack and it looks similar to an iPhone battery pack, giving the VR and AR headset two hours of battery power without being connected to a power source.
It looks like there's going to be a single braided cable attached to the side of the Vision Pro headset. This will connect it to either a static power source if you're at home or sat down, or the Magic Battery if you need to use the headset untethered or on the go.
This is handy as it means you'll be able to experience VR with a lot of freedom. You'll also be able to swap out the Magic Battery for more power while you're on the move. We imagine some users will want to buy lots of battery packs for when they're not near a power outlet.
However, we're not sure that having to pop the battery in your pocket is really the most user-friendly option. Other AR and VR headsets have the battery integrated, but that's what makes the Apple Vision Pro headset smaller and lighter than rivals.
As you'd expect, there's been some criticism of this naming choice on X. Especially considering there's not much that seems particularly magical about the battery. Regular Apple commentator, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, tweeted: "There’s nothing magical about a two hour tethered battery pack, but OK."
Code secrets
The Magic Battery name was spotted by @aaronp613 in the tvOS 17 beta 5 code.
This is the second secret he's found in the tvOS code in as many days. He also discovered references to unreleased iPhone devices, which likely include the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro.
We'll be finding out more about those references in a matter of days if the latest rumors about Apple's September launch event are to be believed. September 12 and 13 are the dates that most industry insiders think we'll be getting our invites for. Gurman has revealed that he thinks September 12 is most likely, so that's the day we'll be putting our money on.
