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Loading the player… Top technology players are gathering at the Game Developers Conference this week to discuss new developments in virtual reality, but one big name is missing from what could be the next big thing: Apple ( AAPL ). Facebook ( FB ), Sony ( SNE ), Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google, Amazon ( AMZN ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) are racing to stake claims in a medium that looks to revolutionize consumer technology. Meanwhile, Apple is planning a March 21 spring product event where it’s expected to launch slightly different versions of existing products. “Apple needs to do something (in VR) at some point, because if they don’t . . . it would be as significant as them missing the iPhone, as hard as it is to believe,” Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster told IBD. “But that’s how big of a deal VR is going to be.” Billions of dollars of investments in hardware, software and content provide evidence that virtual reality isn’t a far-off dream, but the “next computing paradigm,” according to analysts. Yet for now, Apple is selling more of the same and remains dependent on the iPhone, as its smartwatch, tablet and set-top box have failed to be catalysts for major, sustained growth. Apple Prefers Waiting Apple typically takes it slow when it comes to entering new markets. Munster says the tech company learns from and improves on what other companies have produced but haven’t “figured out,” such as the music player, the phone and wearables. He thinks Apple is actually doing the right thing by letting the basics of the VR market get figured out first, and expects that the company will offer a consumer-level headset in about two years. He also sees more third parties creating headsets that utilize the iPhone, much like Samsung Gear VR, for lower-quality applications as soon as this year. But there’s a potential disadvantage for Apple in letting others be the first movers in the virtual reality market. “If one of the other competitors gets it right (has explosive growth), right out of the gate, then it’s playing catch-up and that’s a difficult position to be in,” Munster said. And not only is Apple absent from VR headsets, its high-end desktop computer can’t handle other companies’ 360-degree viewing gear, according to Palmer Luckey, founder of Facebook-owned Oculus. The Oculus Rift headset would have Mac OS support “if they ever release a good computer,” he told Shacknews . To be sure, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company has made investments in the augmented reality space over the past few years, with the acquisitions of Metaio and Flyby Media, and has hired VR talent. But Apple’s efforts to enter a new market seem focused more on developing a car, rather than something that’s in a more similar product category as its other gadgets. Facebook Leaves Opening Apple still has a window of opportunity as its rivals’ VR products require steep up-front costs from consumers. Oculus will begin shipments of the $599 Rift headset on March 28. The HTC Vive will launch in early April at $799. But consumers will also need to have gamer-level PCs, which can cost more than $1,000. That barrier to entry that may leave some breathing room for a late move from Apple. Abi Mandelbaum, CEO of interactive VR-content platform YouVisit, says that Oculus’ strategy is stifling VR’s ability to go mainstream to all consumers. “It’s surprising that Facebook would leave such a big segment of the market out from an initial standpoint,” Mandelbaum told IBD. “They’re not only excluding Apple, but most of the PCs that users own, leaving the vast majority out.” He says his company has been working on algorithms that improve lower-end VR viewing. This could further the use of iPhones for VR in the interim, before Apple comes out with its own headset. “You don’t need to have a high-end VR headset to have a premium VR experience, because the software is doing the heavy lifting,” Mandelbaum said. Apple’s Mixed Reality While its rivals rush into VR, Apple could skip it altogether and instead pursue mixed reality (MR). Munster says there’s a camp that believes VR is just the “appetizer” to a bigger opportunity with MR, which goes beyond entertainment applications to be integrated within daily life. Munster says home designs could incorporate virtual flowers and pictures, for example. And a display containing the weather forecast could be grabbed and manipulated. That would be more in Apple’s wheelhouse, as iPhone applications like the calendar, maps, and photos have become necessities. It could also decide the company’s fate. “Over the next 20 years, the screen as we know it will slowly go away,” Munster said in a Feb. 9 research report. “Given Apple’s business in screens (iPhones, iPads and Macs), Apple needs to have leadership in MR to stay relevant long term.”