Apple Vision Pro Clouds the Bright Future for XR
Last week, Apple unveiled a slew of new products and features, including a new iPhone and Apple Watch, plus updates to Air Pods and Apple Intelligence. Today, it’s the Apple Vision Pro’s time to shine, either because there are enough new specs to merit a separate announcement or because it’s the red-headed stepchild of Apple’s product line.
Despite Apple’s storied track record of products that disrupted, dominated and reshaped their respective markets, the Apple Vision Pro hasn’t exactly lit the XR industry aflame since its launch. That isn’t to say Vision Pro hasn’t had an impact — it’s just one Apple probably didn’t anticipate or want.
Vision Pro came out the gate in February to mixed but optimistic reviews. The headset had some impressive specs at the outset, namely its high-res micro-OLED display and compatibility with the wider Apple product ecosystem. But when it came to entertainment, particularly gaming — a main draw for most consumers interested in headsets — the options were lacking compared with other models.
While Vision Pro came with Apple’s new immersive video format as well as 3D versions of blockbusters including “Dune” and “Avatar: the Way of Water” at inception, Apple’s noncommittal approach to developing non-mobile app games for its products seemed to result in a lack of available games for the headset.
The handful of Apple Arcade games, such as an immersive version of “Super Fruit Ninja,” weren’t exactly groundbreaking, and developers needed time to work out building games for Vision Pro, which is apparently easier said than done. The device didn’t even support a proper VR controller up until this past July, and even then it’s made by a third-party company.
But regardless of the features, even the most devout Apple fans were challenged by its $3,500 price tag. That number, coupled with the fact that Apple was entering an already active XR industry dominated by vastly more affordable headsets, made both critics and users feel like Vision Pro still needed key features to justify its cost.
Over half a year later, and some believe Vision Pro still doesn’t offer a feature set that sets it apart from the competition. The headset has most notably improved its gaming offerings, but it still trails behind its competitors in terms of available games.
As a result, multiple experts have estimated that Vision Pro U.S. sales for 2024 won’t even crack 500,000 units this year. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said that figure falls well blow the “market consensus” of 700,000-800,000 units, while market intelligence firm IDC estimated Vision Po has yet to even hit 100,000 sales in a single quarter. The demand has been low enough for Apple to scale back production even as it brought Vision Pro to international markets.
Still, even if the headset had game-changing specs, Apple had backed itself into a $3,500 corner from the start.
As part of its April special report on Vision Pro, VIP+ found that, following the announcement of Vision Pro in June 2023, 67% of those surveyed said they weren’t interested in buying the headset due to price.
VIP+ Special Report: A Data-Filled Look at the State and Future of Apple Vision Pro + Entertainment
By the time the headset launched in February 2024, that number only decreased by a single point. (When asked what features would make them interested in buying a Vision Pro, 85% of respondents said none.)
Vision Pro’s underwhelming sales seemed to have spooked other companies in the XR space to scrap their own premium-tier headsets. Meta reportedly pulled the plug on its would-be answer to the Vision Pro in late August, instead forging ahead on a cheaper version of its Quest headset, expected to arrive later this year.
A week later, Samsung, Google and Qualcomm’s long-gestating partnership on what many believed was a Vision Pro competitor turned out to be something closer to Meta and Ray-Ban's smart glasses. It’s unclear if or when the project pivoted from headset to smart glasses, but it’s possible the choice was motivated by Meta’s unexpectedly strong smart glasses sales as much as it was by Vision Pro’s lack thereof.
Others have also started to offer Vision Pro-esque features on models with a more forgiving price tag. The past few months saw the launches of both ByteDance's Pico 4 Ultra headset (in just Asian and European markets for now) and Viture's One XR glasses, two affordable wearables that have key Vision Pro specs such as spatial video and floating monitor displays.
Regardless of Vision Pro’s performance, the future of XR remains bright. ARtillery Intelligence estimated that the XR industry is on track to generate over $70 billion in revenue by 2027, a roughly 155% increase from 2023 figures. Still, it’s looking increasingly likely that said growth will be fueled by bang-for-your-buck products rather than luxury items.
Apple is seemingly aware of this trend and could soon be waving the white flag: Developers are reportedly looking at cost-cutting measures for the to-be-announced Vision Pro 2.
Despite Apple’s storied track record of products that disrupted, dominated and reshaped their respective markets, the Apple Vision Pro hasn’t exactly lit the XR industry aflame since its launch. That isn’t to say Vision Pro hasn’t had an impact — it’s just one Apple probably didn’t anticipate or want.
Vision Pro came out the gate in February to mixed but optimistic reviews. The headset had some impressive specs at the outset, namely its high-res micro-OLED display and compatibility with the wider Apple product ecosystem. But when it came to entertainment, particularly gaming — a main draw for most consumers interested in headsets — the options were lacking compared with other models.
While Vision Pro came with Apple’s new immersive video format as well as 3D versions of blockbusters including “Dune” and “Avatar: the Way of Water” at inception, Apple’s noncommittal approach to developing non-mobile app games for its products seemed to result in a lack of available games for the headset.
The handful of Apple Arcade games, such as an immersive version of “Super Fruit Ninja,” weren’t exactly groundbreaking, and developers needed time to work out building games for Vision Pro, which is apparently easier said than done. The device didn’t even support a proper VR controller up until this past July, and even then it’s made by a third-party company.
But regardless of the features, even the most devout Apple fans were challenged by its $3,500 price tag. That number, coupled with the fact that Apple was entering an already active XR industry dominated by vastly more affordable headsets, made both critics and users feel like Vision Pro still needed key features to justify its cost.
Over half a year later, and some believe Vision Pro still doesn’t offer a feature set that sets it apart from the competition. The headset has most notably improved its gaming offerings, but it still trails behind its competitors in terms of available games.
As a result, multiple experts have estimated that Vision Pro U.S. sales for 2024 won’t even crack 500,000 units this year. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said that figure falls well blow the “market consensus” of 700,000-800,000 units, while market intelligence firm IDC estimated Vision Po has yet to even hit 100,000 sales in a single quarter. The demand has been low enough for Apple to scale back production even as it brought Vision Pro to international markets.
Still, even if the headset had game-changing specs, Apple had backed itself into a $3,500 corner from the start.
As part of its April special report on Vision Pro, VIP+ found that, following the announcement of Vision Pro in June 2023, 67% of those surveyed said they weren’t interested in buying the headset due to price.
VIP+ Special Report: A Data-Filled Look at the State and Future of Apple Vision Pro + Entertainment
By the time the headset launched in February 2024, that number only decreased by a single point. (When asked what features would make them interested in buying a Vision Pro, 85% of respondents said none.)
Vision Pro’s underwhelming sales seemed to have spooked other companies in the XR space to scrap their own premium-tier headsets. Meta reportedly pulled the plug on its would-be answer to the Vision Pro in late August, instead forging ahead on a cheaper version of its Quest headset, expected to arrive later this year.
A week later, Samsung, Google and Qualcomm’s long-gestating partnership on what many believed was a Vision Pro competitor turned out to be something closer to Meta and Ray-Ban's smart glasses. It’s unclear if or when the project pivoted from headset to smart glasses, but it’s possible the choice was motivated by Meta’s unexpectedly strong smart glasses sales as much as it was by Vision Pro’s lack thereof.
Others have also started to offer Vision Pro-esque features on models with a more forgiving price tag. The past few months saw the launches of both ByteDance's Pico 4 Ultra headset (in just Asian and European markets for now) and Viture's One XR glasses, two affordable wearables that have key Vision Pro specs such as spatial video and floating monitor displays.
Regardless of Vision Pro’s performance, the future of XR remains bright. ARtillery Intelligence estimated that the XR industry is on track to generate over $70 billion in revenue by 2027, a roughly 155% increase from 2023 figures. Still, it’s looking increasingly likely that said growth will be fueled by bang-for-your-buck products rather than luxury items.
Apple is seemingly aware of this trend and could soon be waving the white flag: Developers are reportedly looking at cost-cutting measures for the to-be-announced Vision Pro 2.