Apple Registers 'xrOS' Wordmark Ahead of WWDC Headset Unveiling

Apple has registered a wordmark for "xrOS" in New Zealand, the first time the company has indirectly revealed both the name of the operating system for its upcoming headset and the official font and styling that accompanies it. From a report: Spotted by Parker Ortolani, the xrOS wordmark registered with the New Zealand Intellectual Property Office shows that Apple will use its San Francisco typeface in xrOS marketing, just as it does for macOS, iOS, watchOS, and tvOS. "xrOS" is meant to stand for "extended reality." Extended reality represents both the augmented and virtual reality functions the headset will support. The name was already confirmed by internal Apple sources last year via Bloomberg, and Apple has also been trademarking xrOS in several countries through a hidden shell company.

So they are licensing names from Cisco again?

[Zarhan]

So.. IOS => iOS
IOS XR => xrOS

Next: xeOS?

xrOS

[93 Escort Wagon]

Rolls off the tongue... like a square wheel made of rock.

Was that the best they could come up with?

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[backslashdot]

I was going to post a similar comment. xrOS is a terrible name. But then so was iPod and iPad. Of course when the iPad name was announced we didn’t like it either: https://apple.slashdot.org/com... [slashdot.org] But at least iPad is easier to say.

Seems pretty good to me

[SuperKendall]

"xrOS" is really more a developer name than anything - I thought it was fine. Not really that hard to say x-r-O-S.

You can also possibly call it "CrossRoss" which sounds much cooler and also rolls better. :-)

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[WankerWeasel]

Exactly. Most consumers don't refer to it as iOS, they just say iPhone (even though other devices may run the OS). Most aren't gonna say "I run macOS." they just say "I have a Mac." which conveys the same thing. The OS name isn't that big of a deal. Only nerds and developers refer to such.

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[93 Escort Wagon]

Only nerds and developers refer to such.

Well, this IS Slashdot...

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[dgatwood]

"xrOS" is really more a developer name than anything - I thought it was fine. Not really that hard to say x-r-O-S.

You can also possibly call it "CrossRoss" which sounds much cooler and also rolls better. :-)

A proper pronunciation is almost indistinguishable from Xerox. :-D

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[SuperKendall]

A proper pronunciation is almost indistinguishable from Xerox. :-D

Yeah I have to admit "Xeros" sounds pretty good!

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[dgatwood]

A proper pronunciation is almost indistinguishable from Xerox. :-D

Yeah I have to admit "Xeros" sounds pretty good!

And if it turns out to just be a massively overpriced Oculus Quest, the jokes will write themselves. (Here's hoping they're doing something particularly amazing.)

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[narcc]

Um, Ken, it sounds like "zeros"...

As you haven't figured it out yet, this isn't great for Apple. The insults practically write themselves.

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[jonadab]

I was thinking of pronouncing the x as a voiceless post-velar fricative (like the ch in Bach and Loch Ness) and rhyming the name with "gross".

So I'll start callint it Tsar-OS now.

[waspleg]

Most appropriately. Get back in your app gulag, comrade.

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[jonadab]

Indeed, I feel like their competitors are definitely going to be green with envy, that they didn't think to name one of *their* products "xrOS" first, and now that Apple has snapped it up, it'll be too late for anyone else to have such a great brand name.

On a side note

[quantaman]

I would find it hilarious if Apple suddenly cracked the metaverse.

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[WankerWeasel]

Would be, considering the billions that Facebook/Meta has dropped on it and the massive financial hit they've taken and been unable to get much traction. Zuck is betting the entire farm on it.

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[DontBeAMoran]

Except that Meta = Facebook and their so-called "vision" looks like an evil commercial-oriented nightmare straight out of "Ready Player One".

Apple calling it "xrOS" could mean "eXtended Reality OS", which seems to align with Tim Cook's vision of "Augmented Reality", a name they couldn't use because it was spoiled by all the other companies which came first.

Remember that Apple's strategy is to only enter a market when they think they can bring something clean and streamlined to the table, being first is almo

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[WankerWeasel]

For sure. Apple has never been about being first. iPhone wasn't the first smartphone. iPod wasn't the first MP3 player. Apple Watch wasn't the first smart watch.

It's not about being first. Google wasn't the first search engine. Tesla wasn't the first electric car. Ford wasn't the first automobile. Success is much more about creating the best iteration of a product. Learning from others successes and failures before entering the market helps chances of success.

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[Joce640k]

iPod was nowhere near the first mp3 player but it's the gadget that saved Apple from bankruptcy.

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[WankerWeasel]

iMac was what saved Apple from bankruptcy. Then the iBook was a huge success too. iPod brought them to the next level in their return story.

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[bn-7bc]

I suspect that for a lot of people , at lest prior to the ipod, apple was the company that made expensive computers that did not run dos/windows either fast or as stable as they ran on a generic whitebox pc. For a lot of people mac was something only creatives used. That all changed with the Ipod that was the first device that allowed people to dip their toes into the apple ecosystem without a major investment.

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[dgatwood]

Apple calling it "xrOS" could mean "eXtended Reality OS", which seems to align with Tim Cook's vision of "Augmented Reality", a name they couldn't use because it was spoiled by all the other companies which came first.

And of course, they chose the second letter of the first word so that people wouldn't automatically assume that this would only be used for porn.

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[DontBeAMoran]

Except that ER = Emergency Room.

Not something you want associated with your product.

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[Joce640k]

I would find it hilarious if Apple suddenly cracked the metaverse.

All they need now is a computer with better graphics than Intel integrated to drive the thing.

Yep, Just uses Cisco's names

[cullenfluffyjennings]

Lets see, Cisco had IOS, then apple used that. Then Cisco had XR OS, looks like apple might use that. I guess apples next OS ill be called NX OS since that is Cisco other os. Or perhaps the mention of anything like NeXT as an OS is still forbidden at apple.

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[TomWinTejas]

Don't forget Cisco had IPhone as well.

https://www.idownloadblog.com/2012/01/27/apple-cisco-iphone-trademark/

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[bn-7bc]

Purchasing a trademark from its owner is not stealing/copying, but don't let facts get in the way of your apple Bashing

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[bn-7bc]

Yea but they operate in such different markets that Cisco parentally did not care to involve the legal department to Apple to change those product names. I suspect Ciisco would have gone full nuclear on Apple if Apple had decided to launch a series of enterprise/service provider network gear with a NOS called anything vagally like IOS or XR OS

Daily reminder, Apple device is for AR, not VR.

[SuperKendall]

It seems every company is pushing another VR apparatus on us,

Maybe so but that's not what Apple is doing, they are building a device primarily meant for AR, not VR - totally different.

Then come the microtransactions.

Where? All of Apple Arcade for example, has games entirely free of micro-transactions. Apple likes subscriptions way more than microtransactions.

You seem to have APle confused with Microsoft, EA and Google...

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[narcc]

Apple likes subscriptions way more than microtransactions. You seem to have APle confused with Microsoft, EA and Google...

Apple invented in-app purchases, Ken. They're responsible for this plague.

Maybe so but that's not what Apple is doing, they are building a device primarily meant for AR, not VR - totally different.

Apple's intentions are irrelevant here. All of the other headsets can do AR as well. Hell, even those cheap plastic things that you slip your phone into can do AR. If there were any innovative developers with a brilliant AR application, why would they be waiting on Apple?

There are exactly two possibilities for what Apple will release, assuming they release anything at all: an ordinary VR headset or an R-Zone knockoff. Oops, I mea

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[omnichad]

Nobody wants VR. It needs to go away.

In the same way that nobody wants a computer address book that looks like a physical address book, I agree with you. Most VR computing is Microsoft Bob but in full 3D. I think the equipment could be useful, but probably not for putting humanoid avatars into 3D space.

But I do think that someone could come up with a killer use case and make the equipment desirable.

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[NoMoreACs]

Nobody wants VR. It needs to go away.

In the same way that nobody wants a computer address book that looks like a physical address book, I agree with you. Most VR computing is Microsoft Bob but in full 3D. I think the equipment could be useful, but probably not for putting humanoid avatars into 3D space.

But I do think that someone could come up with a killer use case and make the equipment desirable.

You mean like these?

https://www.macrumors.com/2023... [macrumors.com]

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[NoMoreACs]

Nobody wants VR. It needs to go away.

In the same way that nobody wants a computer address book that looks like a physical address book, I agree with you. Most VR computing is Microsoft Bob but in full 3D. I think the equipment could be useful, but probably not for putting humanoid avatars into 3D space.

But I do think that someone could come up with a killer use case and make the equipment desirable.

You mean like these?

https://www.macrumors.com/2023... [macrumors.com]

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[Junta]

Other than a few gamers, this isn't really a market that wants this

That is at least *a* market, and one that I would like provided for. Since I'm in that boat. It's not cell phone level broad appeal but it's something.

one could use them while doing other activities.

Have to see the device to know. Note that 'AR' would be part of the 'XR' goal, and if you have an AR set under 100 grams, you basically have 'smart sunglasses'. Also note that Apple is also well known for plugging your ears and blocking the outside world from hearing, and that did find a market. If you have AR you can let the world leak in as much as a ma

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

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[DontBeAMoran]

er = emergency room

XR might have more chance than VR

[e**(i pi)-1]

I feel nausea after half an hour of VR. It could be that augmented reality is better. Google glasses have shown the social obstacles. Once the XR can be implemented into usual glasses and switched on and off easily, it might become a hit. Further into the future will come direct projections into the eye by modifying the eye lids surgically: close the eyes, say the magic word and the projector starts displaying stuff. Will be interesting to see whether the apple googles can take off.

Save your money

[VeryFluffyBunny]

You can get the same effect as a VR headset just by looking at a fixed point on the ceiling above you & then spinning around as fast as you can. Get a friend/colleague to spin your chair for you. It's free & instant!

eXistenZ

[TwistedGreen]

Did they think this up after watching eXistenZ? It's the 90s again, so it's cool to capitalize the X.

OR is this the new EMS vs XMS (Expanded vs eXtended memory)?

It's not Virtual reality, it's eXtended Reality... give me a break.

Compare with Linux

[bill_mcgonigle]

Apple has a gaggle of tiny incompatible yet similar OS products and different names for them all.

Linux runs on everything from mm-size SoC's to Big iron and a fleet of devices in between - and there's no bickering or fiefdoms - it's all "just" linux.

Which is a sign of a quality design.

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[NoMoreACs]

Linux runs on everything from mm-size SoC's to Big iron and a fleet of devices in between - and there's no bickering or fiefdoms - it's all "just" linux.

Which is a sign of a quality design.

LOLWut?!?

Linux is nothing BUT bickering and fiefdoms!

How many Distros???

https://distrowatch.com/ [distrowatch.com]

Why else do you think there has never been, and never will be, The Year of Linux on the Desktop?!?

I Thought Apple Was Supposed to Be Good at Brandin

[organgtool]

First they changed their desktop OS to "macOS" and I wondered if I should pronounce it as mah-coze like I would the word "tacos" or "may-coze" like a group of Mako sharks. Next, they raise the bar by naming this OS xrOS. I can't wait to see what they name their car if they ever manage to release it.

No One Gives A Shit

[Bahbus]

VR sucks and Apple isn't going to make it better. Unimaginative name for an unimaginative company.