According to WallStreetCN, a Chinese news source, Apple intends to release a more affordable and lighter Vision headset by June 2025.
The report mentions that sources within “the supply chain” indicate Apple is moving up the release date from the initial plan of September 2025. It also states that the headset will weigh about 400 grams, which is much lighter compared to the 600-650 gram Vision Pro.
The report also says that the supply chain is getting ready to produce “tens of millions” of units. This is a surprising claim, especially since the current Vision Pro is made in the hundreds of thousands.
To produce the more affordable Vision headset in the millions, a major increase in micro-OLED supply capacity would be necessary to reduce the cost. Currently, the production of the Vision Pro is restricted by the limited output of Sony’s micro-OLED displays.
Last year, Wayne Ma of The Information reported that Apple was evaluating new micro-OLED displays from two Chinese firms, BOE and SeeYa Technology. If these displays meet Apple’s requirements, Ma noted, they could be used in upcoming Vision headsets.
Apple might consider using LCD panels, which are significantly cheaper and widely available. However, LCDs have lower pixel density compared to micro-OLED, which would mean either a much lower resolution or a bulkier headset design. Therefore, it’s unlikely that Apple will choose this option. Several reports have mentioned Apple’s intention to develop a less expensive Vision headset.
A year before the Vision Pro was announced, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo stated that Apple was creating a more affordable headset, with plans to release it in 2025.
Last year, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, known for his accurate reports on the Vision Pro before its official announcement, also reported on the cheaper headset.
He mentioned it would use an A-series chipset, like those in iPhones, instead of an M-series chipset and probably won’t have the EyeSight front display. The iPhone 15 Pro’s A17 Pro chipset has a GPU with 6 cores that is about 60% as powerful as the M2’s GPU. This suggests that an A18 Pro or A19 Pro could potentially match the performance.
In the same report last year, Gurman noted that Apple considered pricing between $1500 and $2500. Just last week, he reaffirmed that Apple intends to launch a more affordable headset before introducing a higher-end Vision Pro successor.
However, he mentioned that the company is still puzzled about how to reduce the cost. This suggests that the pricing and production scale of this headset might not be as certain as WallStreetCN’s report implies.
What we think?
I think Apple will launch a cheaper, lighter Vision headset by mid-2025. It will weigh less and cost less than the Vision Pro. This new version will probably use different tech to keep prices down.
Apple plans to make a lot of them, but they need to sort out some supply issues first. It’s interesting to see if they can do this while keeping good quality.
