By: Nick Gambino
While Apple is most definitely working on a follow-up to their mixed reality headset, the Vision Pro, there’s a report that they are also planning to release a lightweight Vision Air.
“I reported earlier this month that Apple is full steam ahead on two new successors to the Vision Pro: a lighter version at a cheaper price point and a Mac-tethered model aimed at applications that need maximum responsiveness,” Mark Gurman said in a Bloomberg report.
Gurman states that this lighter-weight headset will most likely drop at the end of 2025 or the first half of 2026 (if it drops at all). Other sources like the veteran analyst Kuo reported that it won’t hit shelves until 2027. It’s also not clear whether the Vision Air, as they’re calling it, is going to be a standalone device or if it’s going to replace the Vision Pro.
I’m sure they’re analyzing whether removing features in order to offer it at a cheaper price point is worth the effort. If they’re going to keep going all in on mixed reality, etc. they should at least offer a budget option (though in Apple terms “budget” is still expensive).
From where I’m sitting the two big things that are preventing VR from becoming absolutely ubiquitous are affordability and, surprisingly, less immersion. Yes, VR is too immersive. When you step into it, it leaves little contact with the outside world. This is something that Meta Quest more or less solved with Passthrough.
The Passthrough feature uses cameras on the outside of the device to allow you to see your surroundings while you wear the headset. This means you don’t have to commit to full immersion and shutting out the exterior world while you play around in VR.
Now, Apple’s Vision Pro is not a runaway hit by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, due to the mixed reception it was unclear whether Apple was still all in on their own proprietary VR headset. All these trusted analysts say it’s still definitely on and we’ll get a sequel at some point.
