Apple is rumored to introduce an affordable version of the Vision Pro mixed reality headset sometime next year. Now, renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested that the tech giant has postponed its plans to announce a budget successor to the Apple Vision Pro to beyond 2027. The Cupertino, California-based company is said to instead be planning to refresh the headset with a new M5 chipset next year. On the other hand, the planned lower-end Apple headset is expected to run on an inferior chip, have lower resolution displays and omit the EyeSight feature, which maps the wearer’s eyes in front of the Vision Pro display.
Apple could launch a new Vision Pro next year
In an Has been extended beyond 2027. The analyst also said that Apple’s sole headset for launch in 2025 will be a new version of the Vision Pro with an upgraded M5 processor.
Kuo compared the budget-friendly Apple Vision Pro to Apple’s HomePod Mini, saying that “even after launching the cheaper HomePod Mini, Apple’s smart speaker failed to become a mainstream product.” According to the analyst, Apple delayed the cheaper version of the Vision Pro because simply reducing the price of the headset “will not help create a successful use case” for the product.
As I understand it, production of the cheaper Vision Pro has been delayed beyond 2027 for some time now. This means that Apple’s only new head-mounted display device in 2025 will be the Vision Pro with the advanced M5 processor.
I guess that’s why Apple delayed it really cheap…
– 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) 3 November 2024
The cheap head-mounted wearable is expected to be priced around $2,000 (roughly Rs. 1,68,000) and will be made of cheap materials and run on inferior chips. The headset may also drop the heavily marketed Eyesight feature of the first-generation Apple Vision Pro. Apple may also reduce the quality of the internal XR screen in the rumored model to reduce costs.
The base Apple Vision Pro price starts at $3,499 (roughly Rs. 2,90,000) for the 256GB storage model. The device is also available in 512GB and 1TB storage configurations.
Apple unveiled the Vision Pro, its first mixed-reality headset at WWDC 2023. It is currently available for sale in select countries including the US, China, Europe and Japan. The headset supports both augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies and runs on the VisionOS operating system. It is powered by Apple’s M2 processor and an R1 chip under the hood.
