Main points
- These tips can help you get the most out of your Apple Vision Pro, making it more user-friendly and fun to use.
- Learn how to adjust settings and use shortcuts to make your Vision Pro experience better. For example, press the top button and the Digital Crown at the same time or ask Siri to take a quick screenshot.
- You can also share your Vision Pro experience by mirroring your screen to your Apple TV, iPhone, or Mac.
Apple’s first spatial computer, the Apple Vision Pro, introduced a completely new way to interact with and control an equally new interface.
Whether you recently purchased an Apple Vision Pro or are considering purchasing Apple headphones, it’s a good idea to take a few minutes to learn how to use some of its core and hidden features. For example, did you know you can mirror Vision Pro to an iPhone or iPad? It’s possible and very easy.
Below I’ll walk you through nine different tips and tricks that I find myself using all the time, even after a month of daily use.
One month with Apple Vision Pro: Now I get it.I’m fascinated
Despite my initial skepticism about spatial computing and the barriers to buying glasses, the Apple Vision Pro remains impressive.
1 lost?Center your view
Or you can use it to bring all open windows into the same room
If at any time you feel like the headset isn’t centering new apps and windows in your field of view, you can press and hold the Digital Crown for a second or two until your apps are centered in front of you. It’s a quick feature, but it’s easy to forget, especially if you find yourself frustrated that you can’t find your windows or they’re not where you expect them to be.
It’s also a quick and easy way to bring all your open apps into the room you’re currently in, which is a feature I use frequently after leaving the office and heading to the living room, or vice versa.
2 How to take screenshots on Apple Vision Pro
it’s easy but tricky
Taking a screenshot on the Vision Pro requires a two-button combination, similar to how you take a screenshot on an iPhone or iPad. Since the headphones themselves only have two physical buttons, it’s easy to get the hang of which button to press.
To take a screenshot, Press the top button and Digital Crown at the same time. After quickly pressing both buttons simultaneously, you’ll hear a camera shutter sound letting you know the screenshot has been captured.
Alternatively, you can ask Siri to take a screenshot by saying “Siri/Hey Siri, take a screenshot,” and after a slight delay, you’ll hear the same camera shutter sound to let you know it’s been captured.
Now, for the tricky part: You need to make a conscious effort to keep your head level. I can’t tell you how many screenshots I’ve taken where the windows in the headset looked straight and even, only to see them tilted heavily to the left or right in the screenshot. I’ve had better luck getting direct screenshots since updating to VisionOS 1.1, but your results may vary.
3 How to screen record on Apple Vision Pro
Sometimes video tells a better story
Instead of taking a screenshot, you can screen record what you see in Apple Vision Pro with just a few taps of your finger.To start screen recording, look up until you see the small circle with a down arrow, view it, and then click your finger Open the menu. Next, View and select The Control Center icon looks like two switches stacked on top of each other. From there, look for the “Screen Recording” icon (it has two circles, one inside the other). You’ll see a countdown start, letting you know how long it is until the screen recording starts.
If you press and hold – uh, pinch? – On the Screen Recording icon, you’ll see the same options as on your iPhone, allowing you to enable or disable the microphone and even select the app you want to send the recording to.
4 How to enter the environment (and change the volume)
Patience is the key
The easiest way to enter or leave one of the pre-installed environments or to make quick volume adjustments is to use the Digital Crown on the top right corner of the headset. Once you start turning the crown, you’ll see a circular icon representing your environment in the center of your field of view. Continuously turning the knob to the right increases the immersion of the last used environment, or to the left to decrease the immersion. Getting in and out of Mount Hood, Moon or Yosemite is easy.
However, you can use the same method to adjust the volume on your headphones, but it requires a little patience. If you barely turn the Digital Crown, you’ll see the ambient icon, and the volume icon to the right of it. Make sure you keep your eyes on the volume icon long enough for it to stand out. You’ll know it’s highlighted when the volume icon zooms in and the environment icon shrinks. Now, turn the Digital Crown to turn the volume up or down.
A month later, I still have to consciously remind myself to slow down and look at the volume icon long enough before turning the dial, but this method is much easier than opening Control Center and using the volume slider.
Apple Vision Pro vs Meta Quest 3: What’s the difference?
Apple’s Vision Pro is a natural competitor to the highly regarded Meta Quest 3, although the two are very different. Here’s everything you need to know.
5 How to use your Mac with Apple Vision Pro
This is the ultimate productivity hack
Looking at your MacBook and seeing the Connect button appear automatically at the top of the screen is one of the more magical experiences with Vision Pro. Once you view the icon and select it, your Mac’s screen will go black and you’ll see a giant floating window appear in front of you that effectively acts as an extended virtual display for your Mac. You can then use your MacBook’s keyboard and trackpad to interact with any app on your Mac, or if you have Handoff enabled on your Mac, you’ll be able to use your mouse and trackpad to interact with the Apple Vision Pro app .
If you have a Mac desktop, you will need to start the session manually via Open control center (look up at the small circle and click to open), then select control center iconfollowed by MacBook with Vision Pro icon In front of it, finally, your Mac from the list of options.
In order for all of this to work as designed, you’ll need to make sure you’re logged into both your Mac and headphones with the same iCloud account, have iCloud Keychain enabled on both devices, and have both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi – Fi turned on on both devices.
Keep in mind that if you have multiple monitors connected to your Mac, Vision Pro will only display one screen.
6 How to recalibrate Apple Vision Pro’s eye tracking
It only takes a few seconds to make a huge difference
Navigate Vision Pro by highlighting or selecting something on the display with your eyes, then pinching your fingers and thumbs together to select it. In most cases it works fine. However, there were a few times during my usage where the eye tracking accuracy was less than ideal. Thankfully, you can recalibrate the headset’s eye tracking in less than a few minutes.
The quickest way to start the process is to press the top button on the headset four times in succession.A window will appear (shown above) asking you to confirm the optical plug-in – if you’re like me and don’t have a plug-in, select the top option No optical insert is required for use. Otherwise, select Pair new optical inserts.
Alternatively, you can ask Siri to start the process by saying “Siri/Hey Siri set up eyes.”
7 How to Mirror Apple Vision Pro to iPhone, Mac and Apple TV
It’s easy to share what you see
One of the worst or possibly best aspects of using Vision Pro, depending on your point of view, is that no one else can see what you’re looking at. Just now, as I write this article with my Apple headphones on, I have a window open playing the Colorado Avalanche game. Team AV scored, and while I was celebrating, my son ran into the room to watch the replay. But he can’t. While this tip doesn’t help in this situation, it does illustrate the private nature of the Vision Pro experience.
So if you want to share the experience with someone, whether to help them with a demo or to show off how cool Vision Pro is, you can mirror Vision Pro to another Apple device.
Mirroring your headphones to your Apple TV doesn’t require any additional setup, but if you want to mirror your screen to your iPad or cast it to your Mac, you’ll need to take a few extra seconds to check your device’s settings.
- On a Mac, go to System settings > General > Airdrop and handover then open airplay receiver.
- On your iPhone or iPad, go to set up > General > Airdrop and handover then open airplay receiver.
Now, to AirPlay your Vision Pro’s screen, look up at the circle with the down arrow and select control center iconfollowed by Mirror my view icon Two windows are stacked on top of each other, where you can then select the device you want to mirror your screen to.
8 How to force quit an app on Apple Vision Pro
For problematic applications, or just to free up resources
If you encounter an app that isn’t working properly, or the headset’s performance feels sluggish, you can force quit any open app. Press and hold the Digital Crown and top button a few seconds until you see Force quit window Appear. You can scroll through the list of open apps and you might be surprised to find that the list is much longer than the app you’re currently using. Choose an app then select force quit button.
9 How to shut down and force restart Apple Vision Pro
You can turn off your headphones without disconnecting the power cord
I rarely turn off the Apple Vision Pro, but when I do, I don’t do it just by unplugging the power cord. Maybe I’m old school, but suddenly disconnecting power from your computer would feel problematic. Therefore, I use the built-in menu to close Vision Pro. To access said menu, Press and hold the top button and Digital Crown Until you see the Power Off slider, similar to the one you see on your iPhone or iPad. Just like on other Apple devices, move the slider and the Vision Pro’s screen dims.
If Vision Pro becomes unresponsive, you can remove the power supply or hold down Top buttons and digital crown Until you see the screen go black and the Apple logo appears.