Virtual and augmented reality seems to the latest fad that has caught on the fancy of Apple, what with reports of the company having created a team of the some of the best minds in the field.

According to the latest inputs of Financial Times coming in, a few prototypes are already in place though all of it is still a work-in-progress thing. The immediate competitions Apple will have to contend with in this field include similar headsets from Facebook termed Oculus Rift and Samsung’s Gear VR. Google too has an affordable alternative on offer, one that is made of cardboard.

Microsoft’s HoloLens is another elaborate augmented reality consumer product which tends to recreate a virtual scene right in front of a person and in a real environment.

However, it’s not known so far exactly how Apple wishes itself to be seen in this hot new segment though the Apple Car is one area where its AR and VR ambitions get a generous application. Apple is reported to have in place a separate team of AR/VR staff dedicated to its futuristic car project.

Apple design chief, Jony Ive too had stated last year that the face does not seem to be the best place for placing a VR unit. This also opens up other areas where Apple’s take on augmented and virtual reality may find application, which includes home entertainment as well.

This isn’t the first time though that Apple is exploring virtual reality, having dabbled with it back in the mid-2000. Steve Jobs too had been involved in it though things had come to a naught citing technology not being mature enough at the time. Cut back a decade or so to the future and VR/AR is suddenly the buzzword doing the round of the tech scene worldwide.

What is being seen to be a huge potential of AR and VR is its potential to replace every screen at home, be it a smartphone, tablet, PC, television and so on. Instead, there would be just a single medium that would act to serve all of the above-mentioned purposes, thereby bringing about a quantum leap in the way home entertainment works right now.

With so much at stake, it’s least likely for Apple to remain dormant to the current AR/VR wave sweeping across the tech circles, more so at a time when its iPhones and iPads are believed to have reached a level of saturation.