When Nick Bilton slipped on Apple’s new Vision Pro headset, he entered a world of vibrant, crisp visuals that made the real world seem dull in comparison. The technology was so immersive, so addictive, that returning to normal life was almost disappointing.

“When I take [Vision Pro] off, every other device feels flat and boring,” Bilton wrote in Vanity Fair. “My 75-inch OLED TV feels like a CRT from the ’90s; my iPhone feels like a flip phone from yesteryear, and even the real world around me feels surprisingly flat.“

This intensely immersive experience is poised to transform entertainment and communication. But it also poses risks we are only beginning to grasp.

An experience that’s hard to quit

The Vision Pro, which is now available after nearly a decade in development, aims to crack the elusive market for augmented and virtual reality headsets. It faces no shortage of challenges, from its hefty price tag to its bulkiness.

Yet its most formidable obstacle maybe its sheer addictiveness. The device’s advanced displays and sensors directly stimulate the brain’s visual cortex, offering what Bilton described as a “dopamine hit” far beyond today’s high-definition screens.

“I know deep down that the Apple Vision Pro is too immersive, and yet all I want to do is see the world through it,” one investor told Bilton. “Apple feels more and more like a tech fentanyl dealer that poses as a rehab provider.”

The comment may seem extreme, but the intensity of the Vision Pro experience gives it credibility. The visuals make it painfully hard to return to reality after just a short session.

“In the same way that I can’t imagine driving a car without a stereo, in the same way I can’t imagine not having a phone to communicate with people or take pictures of my children, in the same way I can’t imagine trying to work without a computer, I can see a day when we all can’t imagine living without an augmented reality,” Bilton wrote after an extended trial.

Even director James Cameron, a visual effects pioneer, described his time with Vision Pro as “religious.”

An addictive new normal?

Apple is no stranger to charges that its devices are habit-forming. It has faced years of criticism that the iPhone is intentionally addictive, with its pull-to-refresh and infinite scroll.

But the Vision Pro’s immersion represents a whole new level. Some experts argue it’s less like a habit-forming app and more like a powerful drug. Just as opioids offer an artificial stimulus far beyond the body’s natural pain response, AR/VR provides a visual jolt absent from evolutionary experience.