If you’ve been following Apple’s Vision Pro in the year or so since it was launched, you’ll know we’ve seen an almost endless supply of reports claiming that the mixed reality headset is in trouble and selling poorly. If that’s the case, it’s clear that Apple needs to do something about it.
Yet, that might not be so easy. Remember when the Apple Watch first launched to a collective “meh” from the world? Even the original iPhone wasn’t a runaway success. But as Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman puts it in his latest Power On newsletter, these devices had solid foundations that just needed tweaking for them to become the great products they are today. The Vision Pro, he contends, needs a far more drastic overhaul.
According to Gurman, Apple has a few ideas on how to do this, and it’s clear that the company has to do something. But reading the reporter’s account of Apple’s internal ideas and debates, I’m left thinking that only a couple are what the Vision Pro needs right now. Here’s what Gurman says Apple is considering doing:
- Keep things mostly as they are. The company would release a second-generation Vision Pro, but also launch a cheaper version made with more affordable materials.
- Remove the headset’s onboard computer and external battery and instead shifting many of the Vision Pro’s functions to the iPhone. This would bring down the Vision Pro’s cost and weight, and likely improve battery life.
- Create a set of smart glasses that lack augmented reality (AR). These would be akin to Meta’s collaboration with Ray-Ban and would be like “AirPods on steroids,” in Gurman’s words.
- Develop a set of AirPods Pro with external cameras that interpret the world for you. “This would essentially be the smart glasses path — but without actual glasses,” says Gurman.
- Finally, Apple could launch a standalone set of AR glasses with all the tech packed into the device. This is the “holy grail route,” but isn’t close to being ready.
Looking at these options, we can forget the third, fourth and fifth ideas, as they’re too far off in the future. If the Vision Pro really is struggling as much as the reports suggest, Apple needs a fix as soon as possible. Otherwise, it could end up repeating the mistakes of another recent Apple product.
The HomePod mistake
Right now, the problem is that there’s only one Vision Pro model, and it’s expensive. At $3,499, it’s hardly an impulse buy, and that kind of outlay sets an incredibly high bar for Apple to convince people to purchase one. Right now, it seems that Apple is struggling to do that.
I can’t help but feel that there are strong parallels here with the original HomePod. There was only one model of Apple’s speaker when it launched, and while its quality was fantastic, its price was more expensive than that of the competition and, ultimately, more than most people wanted to pay. There was no cheaper option, and this undoubtedly affected Apple’s sales.
Later, Apple brought out the HomePod mini. It sold so well that Apple dropped the original HomePod entirely, leaving only the mini model in the lineup until the company brought back the regular HomePod with a lower price. Apple found its footing eventually, but not offering a more affordable device was clearly the wrong call.
Apple is making the same mistake with the Vision Pro. Don’t get me wrong, the Vision Pro is an incredible product: it’s undoubtedly one of the best mixed reality headsets in terms of tech and overall quality. But it’s hurt by the lack of a cheaper option in the range.
It could be that Apple is afraid of diluting the Vision Pro brand with a cut-price model. But we’re not talking about a product that costs $350 here — the Vision Pro is 10 times that. The risk of alienating customers is high. For most people, the choice is to either cough up $3,499 for a device that few would consider essential or go without one entirely. Apple is taking a huge risk here, and judging by the reports, it’s not working.
But let’s not be rash — I don’t believe there’s a need to permanently drop the Vision Pro. But it desperately needs a cheaper sibling device to give people an easier way into the ecosystem. In other words, the Vision Pro needs its own HomePod mini, something that provides a great experience for most people without requiring you to remortgage your house.
Thankfully, there are plenty of reports that Apple is actively working on exactly this kind of device. Here’s hoping it makes an appearance soon and gives the Vision Pro the reset it so urgently needs.
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