Vision Pro: What future does Apple have in mind?

How times change: While a year ago, at the beginning of 2024, interested parties in Germany were worried about when Apple would be able to produce enough Vision Pros to launch them outside the USA, Apple is now said to have temporarily stopped production at the turn of the year, according to reports including MacRumors. Allegedly, the iPhone manufacturer now has enough spatial computers in stock to cover the expected demand until a successor model is available. Suppliers in Asia have also produced components for 500,000 to 600,000 devices. Apple traditionally does not comment on this.

However, such a step would not be unusual. And it came with an announcement: there was already talk in October that production would be cut back and stopped completely by the end of the year. Apple is also said to have produced the iPhone 12 mini and the first HomePod in stock and thus easily outlasted the remaining lifespan of the range. The Vision Pro, which costs around 4000 euros in Germany, is currently a niche product. And after the initial euphoria when it first went on sale in February 2024, demand is said to have waned despite more countries selling it. In the meantime, there was also talk of a high return rate.

However, this does not seem to be causing any great pressure to act in Cupertino. With countries such as Switzerland, Apple still has options to expand sales – so far this has not been put into practice. Tim Cook said a few months ago that it was a product for early adopters. This sounded to many as if it had been priced in that the Vision Pro would not be a bestseller. Nevertheless, the news around the turn of the year led to discussions about whether and what Apple has in mind for the future of the Vision Pro. This concerns not only the hardware, but also the question of whether there will be a wider range of content in 2025, which could include immersive experiences and games.

What happens now?

The rumor mill continues to focus primarily on what the future holds for the mixed reality headset in terms of hardware. Apple is said to have pushed back plans for a cheaper, slimmed-down version. This is currently not expected until 2027 at the earliest. Instead, the Californian company is planning to equip the Vision Pro with the next Apple Silicon, the M5, in a second version and, above all, to make it suitable for use with Apple's artificial intelligence, Apple Intelligence. Although the M2 chip built into the first version would be suitable for supporting AI, Apple has not yet commented on whether and how Apple Intelligence could make an appearance on the Vision Pro.

According to information available to the US financial news agency Bloomberg, it is possible that the Vision Pro 2 with M5 could be released as early as the end of this year. However, it has recently been suggested that it could also be delayed until 2026. Apple is reportedly planning to use components from the first Vision Pro in the second, which means that components currently in stock could still be used.

(mki)