Categories: Tech

Apple’s Vision Pro Team is Reportedly Focused on Building a Cheaper, Lighter Headset Due to Low Sales

Apple may no longer be working on a new high-end Vision headset amid slowing sales of the Vision Pro, according to a new report from The Information. Instead, Apple has apparently been finding ways to reduce the cost of components for the first model and is working on a cheaper Vision headset that it aims to ship by the end of 2025.

The first Vision Pro came out earlier this year, and while it’s a very good VR headset, it has a lot of flaws inherent to many other VR headsets. It’s also quite expensive, starting at $3,499, and — what I noticed most when I tried the Vision Pro at an Apple Store — pretty heavy.

With a cheaper Vision headset, which is reportedly codenamed N109, Apple aims to keep the high-res displays that make the Vision Pro stand out but remove some features and make it “at least one-third lighter,” according to The Information. The company apparently wants to price the cheaper Vision headset at a price that’s in line with a high-end iPhone; Bloomberg reported in October that Apple was aiming for a price point between $1,500 and $2,500. And The Information reports that Apple has had trouble cutting costs without compromising too much on features, so this cheaper headset may not make that 2025 goal.

The company is still putting muscle behind the Vision Pro: it plans to begin releasing the headset internationally at the end of June and add a bunch of new features with visionOS 2 this fall. But we’ll have to wait and see if the company ends up releasing another high-end Vision device down the line or if it will focus long-term on a more affordable product.

Terron Gold