Apple’s Vision Pro hasn’t hit store shelves just yet, but someone has already figured out a way to get the headset to run Windows XP. Well, sort of.
Apple recently made the visionOS development kit available for developers interested in creating software for the headset so that it will hopefully have a robust amount of software support when it does launch. Turing Software, the company behind UTM Virtual Machines for Mac has figured out how to get the device to run Windows XP, Apple Insider reports.
The company posted a short demo video on Twitter /X this week showing off XP booting on a Vision Pro simulator. So far that’s as far as it can go. They haven’t yet connected any keyboards of other input devices nor have they run any Windows apps. Still, the operating system boots up, and it seems likely will ultimately be functional on the device.
It’s also worth noting that Microsoft stopped supporting Windows XP in 2014.
Turning Software already makes a UTM Virtual Machine for Mac. The goal behind the software is to allow users to install different versions of Windows and Linux on a Mac. The company says the existing software “employs Apple's Hypervisor virtualization framework to run ARM64 operating systems on Apple Silicon at near-native speeds.”
Apple announced the Vision Pro in June of this year. The $3500 headset projects images on top of your real-world surroundings. The headset is expected to launch early next year.
Apple is rumored to be planning a slow, in-store rollout for the device when it does launch, in part to ensure that their headset fits them correctly and that they are able to obtain all the accessories they might need.
The company reportedly doesn’t plan to offer the device through third-part retailers until at least 2025.
