Apple vision pro 2 feature

Upgraded Apple Vision Pro Gets M5 Muscle, Battery Pass Through, and 120Hz

Ben McKimm
By Ben McKimm - News

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Readtime: 5 min

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Quite frankly, we forgot the Apple Vision Pro even existed. When it was launched, it looked and mostly functioned like the future. However, with limited apps, average battery life, and a price tag that prevented all but the most committed buyers from leaping into virtual reality, it quickly became one of Apple’s most unloved products.

So, it was surprising to see it triumphantly return overnight alongside the new MacBook Pro and iPad Pro. We thought it would disappear, only to return to an auction website in several years as a nostalgia-generating listing. No, the Apple Vision Pro 2 has arrived with more apps, increased battery life (now connecting to power while in use), and a powerful M5 chipset that offers improved display rendering and faster AI-powered workflows.

Priced from AUD$5,999 with 256GB of storage, pre-orders start today, Thursday, October 16th, 2025. Those interested can also book a demo at Apple Store locations today, and it will be available in-store and online around Australia beginning Wednesday, October 22nd.

The brand has narrowed Vision Pro’s focus into two main categories: professional workflows and gaming. Businesses can afford to purchase the device, and it has genuine use cases for those who may not spend their days sitting at a desk, such as engineers, architects, etc. Don’t be surprised if you’re designing, building, or working on something using an Apple Vision Pro in the future. Heck, the best use case we’ve ever found for the Vision Pro was on a new vehicle launch with Porsche, where we had the chance to pull apart the new car’s engine in 3D with the lead engineer who designed it.

We don’t want to dive too deeply into the enterprise opportunities here, but the 16-core Neural Engine makes AI-powered features run up to 50 per cent faster. That translates best to apps like JigSpace, which combine spatial computing with on-device AI to create faster 3D models from photos and allow more seamless parsing of complex datasets with natural language for learning opportunities and training, similar to what we experienced with Porsche.

Gaming is the other focus for the Vision Pro. With a 10-core GPU, third-generation 3-nanometre technology, and 16-core Neural Engine, the new M5 chipset offers advanced hardware-accelerated ray tracing and mesh shading, which you’ll be able to see in the lighting, shadows, and reflection during gameplay of Control, a game initially released for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in February 2021, but is now available on Vision Pro.

Control joins over one million apps, thousands of games, hundreds of 3D movies, and all-new series and films in Apple Immersive, with a selection of live NBA games coming soon.

The new M5 chipset also allows Apple Vision Pro to render 10 per cent more pixels on the custom micro-OLED displays than the previous generation, resulting in a sharper image with crisper text and more detailed visuals. It might sound like a small addition, but 10 per cent can make all the difference when using a VR headset, and the Vision Pro can also increase the refresh rate up to 120Hz for reduced motion blur and a smoother experience when using Mac Virtual Display.

It’s also improved battery life, which now stands at two and a half hours of general use and up to three hours of video playback on a single charge. Most importantly, this battery can now be connected to power while the Vision Pro 2 is in use, directly addressing a major complaint owners of the previous generation device had. To quote the brand’s website on this, it says: “Apple Vision Pro can be used while charging the battery.”

Finally, real-world use has been improved thanks to a purpose-built R1 chip that processes input from 12 cameras, five sensors, and six microphones and streams new images to the displays within 12 milliseconds.

“With the breakthrough performance of M5, the latest Apple Vision Pro delivers faster performance, sharper details throughout the system, and even more battery life, setting a new standard for what’s possible in spatial computing,” said Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Paired with the comfortable Dual Knit Band, innovative features in visionOS 26, and all-new Apple Immersive experiences spanning adventure, documentary, music, and sports, spatial computing is even more capable, entertaining, and magical with the new Vision Pro.”

Pricing for the new Apple Vision Pro 2 is as follows:

  • 256GB – AUD$5,999
  • 512GB – AUD$6,349
  • 1TB – AUD$6,699

Those who want to get their hands on the new, more comfortable Dual Knit Band (AUD$169) will have to fork out additional money. The same goes for the Apple Vision Pro Travel Case (AUD$349), ZEISS Optical Inserts (AUD$169 for readers, AUD$249 for prescription), and Logitech Muse, which is now available to pre-order for AUD$229.95 from the Apple Store.

Pre-orders are open starting today, and buyers can also book an in-store demonstration of the new device. The Apple Vision Pro 2 will be available in-store and online around Australia beginning Wednesday, October 22nd.

Apple vision pro on the couch
Apple Vision Pro | Image: Apple

Ben McKimm

Journalist - Automotive & Tech

Ben McKimm

Ben lives in Sydney, Australia. He has a Bachelor's Degree (Media, Technology and the Law) from Macquarie University (2020). Outside of his studies, he has spent the last decade heavily involved in the automotive, technology and fashion world. Turning his ...

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