Apple plans to make future Vision headsets affordable: Report

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Apple’s first XR headset, the Apple Vision Pro, is an exceptional piece of hardware. It is also ridiculously expensive. In addition, the company plans to drop its successor, the Vision Pro 2, as early as 2025. 

And now, according to TrendForce, the company may try to make its next headset more affordable.

According to the Taiwanese research firm, Apple will introduce two new headsets. One is, of course, the next Vision Pro, likely to be named Vision Pro 2.

The other is a more mainstream headset, rumored to be called Apple Vision without the “Pro” moniker. 

Not only is Apple trying to reduce the cost of the next Vision Pro, but it is also planning a cheaper model

For the next-generation Vision Pro, Apple plans to source components from outside Sony, which will likely reduce production costs and result in a lower price tag. 

The Apple Vision Pro currently costs $3,499, a ridiculously high price that has limited its sales. 

In a recent interview, Apple CEO Tim Cook even acknowledged this issue, mentioning that the Apple Vision Pro is not a mass-market product. 

At $3,500, it’s not a mass-market product. Right now, it’s an early-adopter product. Prople who want to have tomorrow’s technology today—that’s who it’s for. Fortunately, there’s enough people who are in that camp that it’s exciting.

TrendForce also asserts that while the next Vision Pro will be more affordable, it will still pack high-end specs, such as a display with a resolution that exceeds 3,000 pixels per inch. 

Besides lowering the next Vision Pro’s price, a cheaper model is also expected, and according to the firm, Apple will focus on affordability and cost-efficiency to bring visionOS to more customers. 

TrendForce also mentions that Apple could use a cheaper display for the lower-end headset to keep costs down. 

Possible display options for this model include glass-based OLED displays and LCDs with LTPO backplane technology, both of which offer a balance between performance and cost.

While we have heard of a few details about the next Vision Pro and a cheaper variant before, TrendForce has revealed a few interesting new details.

As for their arrival, famous Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently said that the next Apple Vision Pro will launch in 2025 with the M5 chip.

However, he also noted that the cheaper Vision Pro unit has been pushed back to 2027.

Have any thoughts on Apple’s plans for the upcoming Vision headsets? Would you buy a more affordable version of one? Tell us your thoughts below in the comments, or reach out to us via our Twitter or Facebook.