Apple will progressively introduce its $3,500-apiece Vision Pro virtual reality headsets as a part of a slow, piecemeal rollout that may require customers to make in-person appointments on the tech giant’s retail locations starting early next yr, in keeping with a report.
The move comes on the heels of reports that Apple has run into major production snafus that may limit its output of headsets to fewer than 400,000 next yr — a big reduction from initial projections for greater than twice that quantity.
The newly minted $3 trillion company is planning to market the devices in specially designated sections of its 270 locations nationwide where would-be buyers can sample the technology, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.
Apple is reportedly planning on an initial launch in major cities comparable to Latest York and Los Angeles starting early next yr before expanding into other US markets.
The Post has sought comment from Apple.
US-based consumers can start ordering Vision Pro headsets through Apple’s online store starting in early 2024, Bloomberg News reported.
Apple will reportedly begin selling the Vision Pro headsets to customers in Canada and the UK starting late next yr.
The corporate is then expected to expand the international footprint to markets in Asia and Europe soon afterward, in keeping with Bloomberg News.
Apple engineers are reportedly working on “localizing” the device for individual marketplaces comparable to France, Germany, Australia, China, and Hong Kong, those within the know told Bloomberg News.
Last week, the Financial Times reported that Apple was forced to make “drastic cuts” to production targets of the device because its manufacturing partners were battling its intricate design.
Apple, which spent seven years creating the Vision Pro, initially hoped to ship 1 million headsets from assembly plants to store shelves over the course of 2024.
But Luxshare, the Chinese manufacturer which was contracted with helping Apple construct the headset, is gearing up to provide fewer than 400,000 units in 2024, in keeping with FT.
Two other Chinese firms who supply certain components of the device were told by Apple to organize for between 130,000 and 150,000 units in the primary yr, FT reported.
Apple was said to have been forced to revise its projections downwards attributable to disappointment over the production of the headset’s OLED displays.
The production woes have also forced Apple to delay development of a less expensive version of the headset.
Shares of Apple rose by 0.33% as of 1:08 p.m. Eastern time on Friday.
The Vision Pro will directly compete with Meta’s lower-priced headsets when it’s released next yr.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has invested billions in pivoting his firm toward the metaverse, mocked his Silicon Valley rival, saying the brand new gadget is barely for people “sitting on a couch by themself.”
