Discussion

• @jonlax Jon Lax on threads

  People have asked me in private what I think of @zuck's vid and the reaction.  Putting it on main.  - If anyone thinks that Zuck is complacent or this is Nokia/RIM you have never worked with Zuck.  - I lived through so many years of hand wringing about Apple's entrance and now th…

• @tabsnotspaces Vivek Sharma on threads

  Anyone who thinks this is a defensive reaction also doesn't know Zuck...

• @mgsiegler M.G. Siegler on threads

  Love all the “so natural” chatter on this video.  I, for one, say stuff like this all the time off the cuff.  As did Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus.

• @cosmin.stejerean Cosmin Stejerean on threads

  Feeling like it's the lead product is a mistake IMO.  Fully agree with the rest.

• @hilaryamason Hilary Mason on threads

  There's a throwaway comment Zuck makes in the video that eventually we'll all want a “neural interface”... okay, what is he actually talking about here?  Is this building on the CTRL-Labs work?  I watched this because I agree with @benedictevans that seeing a CEO engage directly …

• @dsilverman Dwight Silverman on threads

  The reaction and amplification of Zuck's video is maddening.  CEO of company making VR headset says the headset his company makes money on is better than a competitor's headset.  Well of COURSE he's saying this.  You wouldn't expect him to say otherwise.  Pure dog-bites-man non-n…

• @benedictevans Benedict Evans on threads

  Zuck makes explicit comparison to iPhone versus android, but in this market Meta and Apple are actually trying to build fundamentally different things in a way that wasn't true for Google and Apple.  It's not just about open versus closed - the whole concept of what this thing is…

• @benedictevans Benedict Evans on threads

  You can debate what Zuck says about the Vision Pro, but the fact that he's doing this kind of unfiltered discussion of the market is really interesting from the CEO and founder (and product leader) of a giant company.  It's also what you used to see on Twitter a long time ago. ht…

• @benbajarin Ben Bajarin on x

  @SnazzyLabs I've been wondering how long it will take him to let others build devices on his Android fork. I assume he is suggesting that is going to happen at some point. I think he wants to control the platform and the store and let others bring hardware competition.

• @counternotions Kontra on x

  Mr. Zuckerberg's immediate problem is threefold: 1. Hardware is hard 2. He doesn't quite understand Apple plays in a different league 3. Mr. Cook doesn't publicly “review” competitors' products https://spyglass.org/...

• @hblodget Henry Blodget on x

  Fun to see Mr. Zuckerberg take on Apple fans personally on which AR/VR goggles are best! But I'll respectfully offer a third view: NEITHER product is going to see mass-market consumer adoption unless/until it's as comfortable, stylish, and easy to wear as glasses.

• @joshconstine Josh Constine on x

  @chrisargo_ It's very different since phones worked in isolation but headsets will always need to work in relation to phones. Zuck still kicks himself that his core business lives entirely on devices he doesn't control, and even tried to make his own HTML5 App Store to dodge Appl…

• @lostbrunner @lostbrunner on x

  @Techmeme @mgsiegler Ballmer didn't believe in smartphones. Zuckerberg has been investing in VR 10 years, he believe in VR and he is speaking about a new VR headset Apple Vision Pro. It is totally different.

• @durreadan01 Adan on x

  “Meta Quest 3 is better than Vision Pro”, says Mark Zuckerberg. This is beyond cringe, tbh. A person of his magnitude directly taking jabs at the competition. And unintentionally, he acknowledged that Apple Vision Pro is the product to beat. Even though it should've been... [vide…

• @vrdesktop Guy Godin on x

  Open ecosystem my ass [UploadVR: “Oculus ‘Forcing’ Virtual Desktop To Remove Quest SteamVR Streaming"]

• @parkerortolani Parker Ortolani on x

  I really do not think the Zuck video is the same as the Ballmer one. I think he actually played it just right. Vision Pro does indeed have far more advanced technology, but the issues with it are inescapable.

• @joshconstine Josh Constine on x

  Zuckerberg's blind spot on the Apple Vision Pro is his greatest insecurity: Facebook doesn't make your phone. Headsets will live or die depending on graceful handoffs of apps and notifications from the phone. Facebook can never do that.

• @neilcybart Neil Cybart on x

  @khaled Yeah, odd. I think he simply means lower prices and not Apple.

• @gartenberg Michael Gartenberg on x

  @stevesi .When people talk about Vision Pro, it's often described as “the best technology”. Except the best technology doesn't always win. In fact. It loses quite often. 8 Track vs. Compact Cassette, Betamax vs. VHS. Macintosh vs. Windows I could go on. Devices that can deliver 8…

• @altryne Alex Volkov on x

  @ylecun IDK Yann, are you using your Quest 3 to work in? Are you guys planning to add some AI inferencing on the actual headset? Mark admits that Eye gazing is a superior interface but it was taken out to cut costs, and I don't really buy the “our hand tracking is better” bit.

• @bzamayo Benjamin Mayo on x

  The iPhone Ballmer snippet is funny, but his main point was that it was too expensive. And that critique was perfectly true: Apple slashed the price of the original iPhone just three months after launching it, and the headline feature of the iPhone 3G was another price cut.

• @benz145 Ben Lang on x

  If I was Meta PR, this would be my pitch for Zuck's video: 1.  We're happy to have Apple join us in building the future of computing with XR.  In 2014 people thought we were crazy when we bought Oculus.  And now the world's leading technology companies like Apple are following ou…

• @gfodor @gfodor on x

  Thirty five hundred dollars? Fully subsidized? With a plan? That is the most expensive headset in the world! And it doesn't appeal to gaming customers because it doesn't have hand controllers. Which makes it not a very good Beat Saber machine. [image]

• @brianroemmele Brian Roemmele on x

  This is by far the best Mark Zuckerberg video he has made. Not only did he speak directly to Apple and Vision Pro, he established a foundation for a commitment to open source. This is the high ground, and ironically this was the foundation of MacOS and iOS. (h/t 📽️ @pitdesi) [vid…

• @neilcybart Neil Cybart on x

  The “Steve Ballmer iPhone video” is 16 years old. Worth watching the full 2-minute clip. I actually think it got worse as the video went on. Ballmer implied a Motorola Q could do everything an iPhone can do for just $99. Sounds familiar? [video]

• @cixliv @cixliv on x

  Everyone is thinking this is the new console wars with Apple vs Meta. I disagree, it's bigger than that. AR/VR devices will replace everything. Consoles, TVs, monitors, desktops (final boss is phones). This will make the console wars look like a pre game. Strap in.

• @danielnyirfa @danielnyirfa on x

  Zuck's  Vision Pro video is a PR disaster. 1. You don't openly call brand supporters ‘fanboys’. I mean, yeah, the term itself is widely accepted and used to mock brand zealots, but as the CEO and face of a competitor brand, you just.. don't do that publicly. You don't. Fuel...

• @ow Owen Williams on x

  dudes all over twitter being like wow what a visionary, but i watched this video and it just felt like watching steve ballmer laugh at the iphone for not having a keyboard in 2007 (also, it looks like it was shot on a potato)

• @mgsiegler M.G. Siegler on x

  @lostbrunner @Techmeme “But if you actually take a look at the 1.3 billion phones that get sold, I'd prefer to have our software in 60% or 70% or 80% of them, than I would to have 2% or 3%, which is what Apple might get.” Feels like he believed. Just in the wrong approach.

• @gfodor @gfodor on x

  I've hated on Meta for years (years!) due to their toxic business model inevitably leading to a dystopian world where their VR/AR headsets spy on our every move. I'll take it all back if Zuck open sources the Quest stack. It's the only way he can compete with Google. He should!

• @msquinn Megan Quinn on x

  Welcome back, @mgsiegler (and welcome to Techmeme @Spyglass_Feed ). I know this is a better Valentines gift than I could ever give.

• @steven_aquino Steven Aquino on x

  Out of MG's scope, but it's worth noting too Zuckerberg doesn't mention accessibility. A tech product is only as good as how accessible and inclusive it is to disabled people. Given Apple's history here, that's a big deal in the appeal department.

• @lulumeservey Lulu Cheng Meservey on x

  This isn't just good comms It's only possible with a founder-led company No professional CEO would take it this personally

• @ylecun Yann LeCun on x

  Alright guys.... Quest vs Vision Pro: - Quest-3 is not just a better value, it's a better product. - open vs closed ecosystem.

• @stevesi Steven Sinofsky on x

  This is fantastic. Anyone who says this is anything less misunderstands the dynamic and where the technology is in the arc. This is spectacular as a leader and deep as a product person. 💥 [video]

• @thrilluwu @thrilluwu on x

  zuck is right. Quest 3 IS the better product vs Vision Pro. Don't think anyone was arguing that. Better value, a robust store, more use cases. Meta's been building VR hardware for a decade and it shows. but holy shit man, Quest UIUX is an absolute NIGHTMARE.

• @tina__nigro Tina Debove Nigro on x

  Like watching a 2007 Nokia fan telling you iPhone is not that advanced because you can do the same with Symbian. He could've just said nothing, taken the best things of visionOS, add eye tracking back and be a king. Now he's got his own Ballmer iPhone video. Surprising misstep

• @nikitabier Nikita Bier on x

  @kavinstewart Better to explain it in Star Wars terms: A New Hope - The empire launches the iPhone when Zuck, a 22 year old, is running a college flirting website Return of the Jedi - Jiu jitsu dad has been training for this day on a remote island in the Pacific

• @nikitabier Nikita Bier on x

  Bull thesis: Zuck will die before he loses a platform war to Apple. [video]

• @esaagar Saagar Enjeti on x

  Nothing but respect to Zuck fighting for his product but he skips over productivity applications which makes Vision Pro a 10X for work related activity and justifies price point Quest is an entertainment device and priced accordingly. Vision Pro is a full suite

• @thestalwart Joe Weisenthal on x

  The Zuckerberg video is really good. As a shareholder of both Apple and Meta (through an S&P 500 index fund), I wish they would collude instead of compete. But still it's cool to CEO so overtly combative towards a rival.

• @austen @austen on x

  Not gonna lie Zuck coming after Apple saying they have crappy design and mediocre software is 🔥🔥🔥 [image]

• @paulg Paul Graham on x

  Maybe Tim Cook and Zuck as rivals will ship good new stuff as fast as Steve Jobs would have. I always assumed “the next Steve Jobs” would be one person, but maybe it will be two.

• @mgsiegler M.G. Siegler on x

  Some thoughts from late last night on Zuckerberg's Vision Pro smack talk/down... https://spyglass.org/...

• @getpeid Carl Pei on x

  See you in the arena Zuck, trying stuff.

• @andrewhartar Andrew Hart on x

  The competition in this market is great. Quest's big missing feature is an OS with consistent UI and app frameworks. “You can get big windows” is Zuck's version of Ballmer's “Windows phone is a fine device. It can do email. It can do messages.” [video]

• @t3dotgg Theo on x

  Alternative angle: BlackBerry could have made a similar video about the iPhone when it dropped

• @marckohlbrugge Marc Köhlbrugge on x

  “500 dollars? Fully subsidized? With a plan? I said that is the most expensive phone in the world. And it doesn't appeal to business customers because it doesn't have a keyboard. Which makes it not a very good email machine.” - Steve Ballmer about iPhone [video]

• @shakeelhashim Shakeel on x

  Hard disagree, and it seems like he doesn't get *why* people find the Vision Pro so magical (and why no one's had the same “omg” reaction to Meta's headsets). Obsessive focus on tech specs, no attention to UX/design. Gives me BlackBerry in 2008 energy.

• @earcos Eduardo Arcos on x

  Reminds me of Blackberry execs dissing on the iPhone and attempting to sell their keyboard phones. Not a great PR move by Zuckerberg.

• r/OculusQuest r on reddit

  Mark Zuck is absolutely right