{"id":"1794303885646-tech-segment","slug":"five-dollar-diy-vision-pro-alternative","title":"Five-Dollar DIY Vision Pro Alternative","summary":"A DIY project created a roughly $5 3D-printed headset shell that uses an iPhone, and was designed to support Android/Pixel, to approximate many Apple Vision Pro software features; it is not a standalone Vision Pro-equivalent headset. This is a newsletter-style promo for an AI news roundup; no checkable claim in the post text. This is speculative/opinion language about AI content rewards; no specific factual claim.\n\nThe Anker 737 Power Bank is listed with a 24,000mAh capacity and 140W output, and the Anker Prime power bank is listed at 27,650mAh with up to 250W output. This is promotional copy for an AI news video; no specific checkable claim. This is a phone-rental service listing for concerts, not a factual news claim. This is another phone-rental service listing for an event, not a factual news claim.\n\nArs Technica reports that after a merger, James Gunn and Peter Safran are out as DC Studios co-heads, with Jeremy Latcham replacing them.","publishedAt":"2026-11-10T09:44:45.646Z","channel":{"id":"tech","name":"Oncast Tech","language":"en"},"show":"Tech After Dark","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: A DIY project created a roughly $5 3D-printed headset shell that uses an iPhone, and was designed to support Android/Pixel, to approximate many Apple Vision Pro software features; it is not a standalone Vision Pro-equivalent headset. This is a newsletter-style promo for an AI news roundup; no checkable claim in the post text. This is speculative/opinion language about AI content rewards; no specific factual claim.\nSource: [hackster.io](https://www.hackster.io/news/can-5-get-you-an-apple-vision-pro-alternative-714788223cde) NAMES: $AAPL = Apple Inc. stock ticker; $GOOGL = Alphabet (https://x.com/techeblog/status/2118991465980502221)\n\nTRUE: The Anker 737 Power Bank is listed with a 24,000mAh capacity and 140W output, and the Anker Prime power bank is listed at 27,650mAh with up to 250W output. This is promotional copy for an AI news video; no specific checkable claim. This is a phone-rental service listing for concerts, not a factual news claim. This is another phone-rental service listing for an event, not a factual news claim.\nSource: [anker.com](https://www.anker.com) POST 2118499912619098541: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841564718498034: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841477984514226: NOCLAIM n/a (https://x.com/samsino_/status/2119773142583296395)\n\nTRUE: Ars Technica reports that after a merger, James Gunn and Peter Safran are out as DC Studios co-heads, with Jeremy Latcham replacing them.\nSource: [arstechnica.com](https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/) NAMES: DCU = DC Universe/DC Studios; James  (https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"A DIY project created a roughly $5 3D-printed headset shell that uses an iPhone, and was designed to support Android/Pixel, to approximate many Apple Vision Pro software features; it is not a standalone Vision Pro-equivalent headset. This is a newsletter-style promo for an AI news roundup; no checkable claim in the post text. This is speculative/opinion language about AI content rewards; no specific factual claim.","sourceName":"[hackster.io](https://www.hackster.io/news/can-5-get-you-an-apple-vision-pro-alternative-714788223cde) NAMES: $AAPL = Apple Inc. stock ticker; $GOOGL = Alphabet","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/techeblog/status/2118991465980502221","claim":"Here's a super budget-friendly alternative to the Apple Vision Pro that uses an #iPhone or #Google Pixel phone. #technews $AAPL $GOOGL https://t.co/zvBXY96XdE","author":"@techeblog"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"The Anker 737 Power Bank is listed with a 24,000mAh capacity and 140W output, and the Anker Prime power bank is listed at 27,650mAh with up to 250W output. This is promotional copy for an AI news video; no specific checkable claim. This is a phone-rental service listing for concerts, not a factual news claim. This is another phone-rental service listing for an event, not a factual news claim.","sourceName":"[anker.com](https://www.anker.com) POST 2118499912619098541: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841564718498034: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841477984514226: NOCLAIM n/a","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/samsino_/status/2119773142583296395","claim":"Anker 737 Power Bank - 24,000mAh with 140W Output ⚡ Smart Digital Display screen 🤖 Compatible with android & iPhone, Vision Pro, Samsung, MacBook, Dell, AirPods, and more. 🔖₦190,000 Anker Prime Power Bank ⚡ 27,650mAh capacity with 250W max output. - Smart App Control - http","author":"Samson, Tech & Gadgets🔌 (@samsino_)"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Ars Technica reports that after a merger, James Gunn and Peter Safran are out as DC Studios co-heads, with Jeremy Latcham replacing them.","sourceName":"[arstechnica.com](https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/) NAMES: DCU = DC Universe/DC Studios; James ","sourceUrl":"https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/","claim":"DCU shake-up: James Gunn and Peter Safran out post-merger - Producer and former Kevin Feige protege Jeremy Latcham will replace Gunn and Safran.","author":"Ars Technica"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://x.com/techeblog/status/2118991465980502221","name":"[hackster.io](https://www.hackster.io/news/can-5-get-you-an-apple-vision-pro-alternative-714788223cde) NAMES: $AAPL = Apple Inc. stock ticker; $GOOGL = Alphabet","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"@techeblog"},{"url":"https://x.com/samsino_/status/2119773142583296395","name":"[anker.com](https://www.anker.com) POST 2118499912619098541: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841564718498034: NOCLAIM n/a POST 2117841477984514226: NOCLAIM n/a","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Samson, Tech & Gadgets🔌 (@samsino_)"},{"url":"https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/","name":"[arstechnica.com](https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/11/dcu-shake-up-james-gunn-and-peter-safran-out-post-merger/) NAMES: DCU = DC Universe/DC Studios; James ","kind":"news","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ars Technica"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794303885646-tech-segment-five-dollar-diy-vision-pro-alternative","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/tech","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794303885646-tech-segment-five-dollar-diy-vision-pro-alternative","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1794303885646-tech-segment-five-dollar-diy-vision-pro-alternative and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Matilda","text":"Five dollars. That's what one project says gets you a Vision Pro-style headset."},{"host":"Chris","text":"I saw Techeblog posted it on X. A super budget-friendly alternative using an iPhone or Pixel."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Alternative is doing Olympic-level heavy lifting. It's a 3D-printed shell. The phone does the actual work."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Right, but for five bucks you get a lot of the same spatial software features."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Not the same. A Vision Pro is a self-contained computer with its own chips. This is a phone holder with lenses."},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's exactly why I like it. Most people already carry the expensive part in their pocket."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"So the killer feature is that you don't have to spend thirty-five hundred dollars."},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's a pretty good feature."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"But you lose the eye tracking, the hand tracking. It'll feel like a phone strapped to your face."},{"host":"Chris","text":"For watching a movie on a plane? That might be enough."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Until the phone heats up and the battery drains in an hour."},{"host":"Chris","text":"The project says it supports Android too, which Apple never did."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Fine. It's a clever hack. I'll give it that."},{"host":"Chris","text":"It's exactly the kind of weird build this show is for."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"At four forty-three in the morning, weird builds are the whole point."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Speak for yourself. I'm here for the five-dollar face computer."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"This is why Silicon Valley can't have nice things. Somebody always duct-tapes a cheaper version."},{"host":"Chris","text":"And that's called innovation. The expensive version points the way, the cheap version follows."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"But it's not a Vision Pro alternative. It's a DIY toy."},{"host":"Chris","text":"A toy that demos spatial video. That's how people get curious."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Or they try it, the lenses fog up, and they go back to a regular screen."},{"host":"Chris","text":"You have no romance for the garage tinkerer."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I have romance for things that work. This works, barely."},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's the whole charm."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Fine, I'll say it. I want to try one."},{"host":"Chris","text":"There it is."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Don't you dare put that on air."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Too late. It's on air."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Different world. David Akpovi posted an AI roundup on X asking, is the AI honeymoon over?"},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I think it is. The market's finally asking where the revenue is."},{"host":"Chris","text":"The market's always late. The models are still getting better."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Better at burning cash. OpenAI, Anthropic, xAI, all racing to build bigger data centers."},{"host":"Chris","text":"But every major tech shift looked like this. The early internet burned billions before it made a cent."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The early internet didn't need a new power plant every time someone asked a chatbot a question."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Now you're exaggerating. But the cost does force companies to get efficient."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"That's exactly my point. The honeymoon phase is free money and no questions. That's ending."},{"host":"Chris","text":"I think what's ending is the free tier. The real products are about to get expensive."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"So users pay more, companies still lose money. Where's the win?"},{"host":"Chris","text":"The win is the tool gets useful enough that businesses can't live without it."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Some will. But a lot of these companies won't last."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Good. That's a market, not a bubble. The weak ones go."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"You're more optimistic than I am. I see a correction coming."},{"host":"Chris","text":"And I see a shakeout. Same storm, different umbrella."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I'll remember you said that when the layoffs hit."},{"host":"Chris","text":"I'll bring it up at the next AI earnings call."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The bigger risk is that the hype outruns the actual value. We've seen this movie."},{"host":"Chris","text":"And the actual value is already real. Coding, search, translation. That's not hype."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"It's real, but it's not profitable enough to justify the spend."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Give it two more years. The models get cheaper to run."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"If they do, I'll happily change my mind."},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's fair. Until then, I'm on the honeymoon extension."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I'm booking you a reality check."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Send it to my chatbot."}]}