The interlinked hype bubbles of augmented and virtual reality markets are back with a vengeance in the opening days of 2022. Misjudged predictions of headset glory grace the Faultline inbox every year like clockwork – but is there any substance to these claims this time around? Long-term visions of metaverse applications are certainly adding value to the hardware on which these immersive experiences rely, although (as we argued consistently throughout 2021) no metaverse will reach true metaverse potential (we’re talking 100 million+ users) without breaking the shackles of today’s headsets. One company reportedly not buying into the metaverse concept is Apple, which also happens to be one of the world’s greatest letdowns when it comes to delivering AR/VR products. Apple…