Apple Introduces Persistent Widget System for Vision Pro in VisionOS 26

WWDC happened this week, and Apple’s rolling out some wild stuff with Vision Pro in visionOS 26. So, imagine this—widgets that don’t float in space like usual. Instead, you can slap them on a wall or a table, and they just stick there, no matter if you turn your headset off and on. Kind of like magic… but not.

Anyway, I was watching this developer session—probably sipping a cold brew too fast—and they explained this new persistent widget system. Vision Pro windows usually drift around, but now these widgets are like part of your room. They don’t move an inch, even if you reset everything. It’s as if Apple is sneaking digital sticky notes all over your reality. Weird but kinda cool, right?

Here’s the kicker—these widgets aren’t just new toys. Apple’s got them set up to use widgets from iOS and iPadOS too. So, there’s a ton for Vision Pro users already. Yet, they also tossed in some fresh tricks for Vision Pro with new sizes and aspect ratios. Choices, choices…

And they added another wrinkle with overlays—paper or glass—based on how you want them to react to room lighting. Like for a chill photo widget? Paper’s your pal. It dims with the lights, blending into your space like that random art piece you forgot you had. But if you need to peek at dynamic info, the glass style keeps it lit up, so you don’t strain your eyes squinting at numbers.

And there’s this whole proximity-awareness deal. Walk closer to a weather widget, and it flips from just “sunny” to a full-on forecast for the week ahead. It’s like it’s reading your mind—or maybe your feet. Who even thinks this stuff up?

Apple’s cooking up some exclusive Vision Pro widgets too, like this album art thing that you click to play music, and a “photo window” turns your wall into a view to another world. Didn’t I once dream about this exact thing?

Oh, and clocks. Fancy new designs for clock widgets. Why are clocks always the go-to? But they’re serious about making these widgets mesh with your surroundings. You know, stuck on walls, casting shadows, hidden behind your couch just because they can be.

There’s a ton of customization options too—tweak the size, change colors, and play with light or dark themes. You can adjust them to feel like picture frames, or sink them into walls like weird digital picture frames.

The interactive part sounds fun. You could check off to-dos with a pinch, or just touching it—though who touches a wall to cross off a grocery list, I wonder? But if you try and it doesn’t work, it just boots up the app anyway. Classic tech backup plan.

These things are in the VisionOS 26 beta right now, and they’ll pop up for everyone by fall. Feels like the future’s sneaking up on us, widget by widget. Or maybe we’re just stuck on them, deciding where to pin them until then.