In February, Apple officially started selling its Vision Pro mixed reality headset. It was a bold new product launch for the company, and it also came with a bold and expensive price tag of $3,499. There were also other issues with the device as noted by reviewers, including its weight and its relatively poor battery life. There have also been been unconfirmed reports that the Vision Pro was simply not selling well.
Today, a report from The Information, via unnamed sources, claims that Apple has told its parts suppliers that it has decided not to move forward with the development of the full-blown follow-up to this headset, the Vision Pro 2. Instead, Apple will put its focus on a cheaper MR headset, which reportedly has the code name N109.
According to the story, Apple wants the cheaper headset to retain the high-resolution display that the current Vision Pro has. However, to make it cheaper, it will try to get rid of some of the original Vision Pro"s features. Apple also reportedly wants to make this new headset a third lighter than the Vision Pro.
The report claims Apple"s goal is to launch the new headset at a price that"s around that of the current high-end iPhone, which is about $1,600. While that price target is certainly less than what the current Vision Pro has, it is still much more expensive than the Meta Quest 3, which costs $649 in its highest end model. The story says Apple is targeting a late 2025 release for the cheaper MR headset.
Earlier this month, Apple announced that the current Vision Pro would finally start being sold in countries outside the US. Preorders have already begun for the headset in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore for a launch on June 28. On that same day, preorder will begin for the Vision Pro in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK, with its launch happening on July 12.