You have to admit that a screen with 54 times the pixel count of the first-generation Retina screen is pretty impressive.
Per iFixit’s in-depth teardown analysis, the company has reported that the Vision Pro has a pixel density of 3,368 ppi. While not technically 4K, the displays far surpass the first generation Retina display on the iPhone 4, which debuted in 2010. iFixit has also stated that this is “the highest-density display that we’ve ever seen,” besting the HTC Vive Pro (950 ppi) and Meta Quest 3 (1,218 ppi).
As iFixit and Steve Jobs explained, pixel density has as much to do with pixels per inch as it does the distance the screen is from your eyes. Because the screens are so close to the user’s eyes, VR headsets measure displays in pixels per degree to generate “angular” resolution, which iFixit estimates at 34 ppd, about the same as a 65-inch television.
Additional details of the updated teardown highlighted elements like the battery, which uses three iPhone-battery-sized packs stacked atop each other connected in series, sensors, and chips. Still when it comes to repairing and replacing broken parts, Vision Pro received a relatively low repairability score of 4 out of 10 due to its replaceable battery, and magnetic lenses and light seal.
iFixit stated that there is much room for improvement: “Our hope is that, by the time these things get shrunken into a pair of eyeglasses, repairability won’t be something tacked on at the end, but a fundamental design tenet. If face goggles really are the future of computing, then we need to get this right from the very beginning.”
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.