At a glance, there don't appear to be many new features in the second beta of iOS 17.2 — with the exception of Spatial Video recording for Apple Vision Pro.

One of the features of the Apple Vision Pro is that it includes Apple's first three-dimensional camera, capable of taking spatial photographs and videos that can be viewed via the headset. Apple promised the feature would arrive "later" for iPhone 15 Pro, and the first vestiges of it are available in iOS 17.2 beta 2.

Videos are shot in 1080p, and Apple says that they will take about 130 megabytes per minute of video — which is about 40% more than it takes for a minute of non-3D 1080p video. The files are stored in what Apple calls "Apple HEVC Stereo Video" format, with the "hvc1" codec.

Both left-eye and right-eye views are carried in each video sample of the track, and the format allows the primary eye to be either the right or left. Apple requires that a reader that does not support multiview video should be able to decode the base layer of the video track for presentation without a stereoscopic treatment for backward compatibility features.

How the tracks will differ when shot on the Apple Vision Pro, versus on an iPhone 15 Pro isn't clear. The camera separation on the Apple Vision Pro approximates that of the human eye gap, while the center of the lenses on an iPhone 15 Pro is about a half-inch.

AppleInsider will test this feature in the coming days. Ultimately, the final judgment will have to wait until the Apple Vision Pro ships in 2024.

Source: Appleinsider