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Apple's Rumored $3,000+ AR/VR Headset Said to Enter Mass Production in August-September
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The current Mac Pro (and its display!)? The iMac Pro? The G4 Cube?
Well, to be fair there is also the "Give me the most expensive computer-thing you have because I can afford it" crowd. But technically - yeah, these were pretty much professional only.
The key word is “only”. The products you mention were available to all consumers who wanted them, not only developers or high end pros.
But people are ALREADY buying $2,000 VR setups.
The Quest 2 came out in October of 2020 (so... 16 months ago), the price is the same as it was at launch ($299 or $399 depending on the amount of storage you want); so I have absolutely no idea where those Quest comments are coming from. Maybe you're mistaking it for another headset.
And while Meta hasn't released sales numbers, the "Oculus" app was the #1 app downloaded in the App Store in the month of December. VR Games are regularly topping game sales charts (meaning, against all games on all platforms); such as Zenith which just came out and was the #1 game on Steam at launch. It's a VR only game, and was ALSO sold on the Quest and PlayStation; so those sales won't be included in Steam. The Quest alone has 850 games in its store and it can play PC VR games as well. PlayStation has over 500 titles for their VR headset.
Currently there are roughly 171 million VR users worldwide. That's a 10x increase in just 5 years (There were 16 million in 2016.) This is an EXPLODING market that's growing faster than virtually anything.
All of your comments, especially the one about "no software", was true a couple of years ago. But the market has changed pretty drastically. I'd really encourage you to familiarize yourself with how this space has changed because it has changed DRASTICALLY. It's not 2018 anymore. Apple may end up dropping a turd here but their track record suggests they'll be a major player in this market and may define it entirely.
This is all really sounding like 2010 and the original iPad. Lots of "Well there's no software for it, who would buy it" type questions. Apple has an excellent track record of getting software support behind hardware really rapidly.
To put those numbers into perspective; today 6.6 billion people; or roughly 85% of the entire planet, use a smartphone. In 2007, there were 130 million people using smartphones. Is VR going to be that pervasive? Nah, no way. But we are in "2007" in terms of VR hardware. Right about the time that things start to shift dramatically and big players come in and see it grow exponentially.
Yep.
And of course, the iPhone when it launched was behind existing smartphones and more expensive than those existing smartphones. What Apple did so incredibly well of course was build a better user experience. It turns out customers didn't care about spec sheets or even the number of features you could pack in. They just wanted something that was really cool to use. My 2005 Smartphone ran a (very stripped down) version of Microsoft Office, could send pictures, could listen to music, could shoot video, you name it. All running Windows Mobile. When the iPhone came out in 2007 I laughed; because it was more expensive than my 2 year old phone and less capable. At launch the thing could only send basic texts, take photos poorly (no video), and sometimes make a phone call maybe. It was a glorified flip phone and it sold like hotcakes.
I finally jumped ship and got an iPhone in 2010 (iPhone 4), but-- yeah. I was wrong. At least, insomuch as what would dominate the market. I jumped ship because, well, the iPhone 4 was spectacular and there were no apps for Windows Mobile. Not like there were for the iPhone. Plus, the iPhone could install the apps directly. I didn't have to download them from a website and install them with a USB cable.
As far as VR "not taking off", the numbers don't show that. VR is growing exponentially right now. Sales of games and hardware are through the roof. Just had our first VR game top video game sales charts a few weeks ago.
Well it's growing that fast "just now", and it's been around quite a while. But, and I agree, if you look at current potential, stuff appears to be a market in its own right. I'm just not convinced yet that games alone will be enough to make it ubiquitous as in "everyone" needs such a thing as "everyone" needs a smartphone today. We'll see.
I guess that kind of comment goes more towards that an Apple VR headset would certainly not play nice with available platforms as it's Apple's custom. And one can seriously doubt that Apple would start with a strong catalogue of VR games and applications considering Apple Arcade is still pretty lackluster even a couple of years in.
That stat is ridiculously too high. Maybe that many people have tried VR at least once if you include the low end stuff like Gear VR and Google Cardboard.
There were about 3.4 million headsets connected to Steam last month. Most PC VR users use Steam. If half of PSVR owners use their headset monthly, that would be another 3.4 million. I'll estimate about 10 million active Oculus/Meta Quest users that don't connect their headset to their computer.
So maybe a tenth of that 171 million estimate, and I think even that estimate is very generous. Maybe double that tenth if you want to get the total number of VR headsets sold.
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I thnk those who keep on posting about the merits of VR/AR as to why Apples entry into VR/AR could be a success need to go back and read what they've posted because each and ever time the same word or wording keeps proping up in those posts which is 'games,'gaming','number of games available', basicly the premise being that gaming is what is driving the success of VR/AR. I gather these members do not regulary read the discussions section because if they did they would have noticed one very imporant fact, Apple do not do games (in the sense of gaming that PC computers do).
So, if so members are using the argument that it is games that is driving the sales of VR/AR devices then Apple's VR /AR device is doomed to fail because Apple does not have an effective gaming platform to help drive up potential sales.
So, if so members are using the argument that it is games that is driving the sales of VR/AR devices then Apple's VR /AR device is doomed to fail because Apple does not have an effective gaming platform to help drive up potential sales.
If these masks sell for $3,000, I bet the companion accessory, the iSnorkel, will cost at least another grand. I wonder what max depth they'll be rated for.
Games are driving current sales of current devices? But, so is fitness? (I know a couple of people who love the fitness apps they use with their Quests?)
I really don't think that Apple will push this as a gaming device? Health/Fitness/Lifestyle will be the big drivers? Gaming/Entertainment will be, "Yeah, it does that too, and because of how light and comfortable it is, it's better than the competing devices for that, but seriously... look at this workout from your favorite sports team or actor/actress you can add to your Fitness+ subscription for $9.99."
And, as far as gaming goes, all Apple really has to do is include a way for the Headset to connect to any PC or console someone chooses?
If, in addition to all the Lifestyle/Health/Fitness uses, someone can plug this into a decent gaming pc, and use it with their favorite flight or racing sim? Awesome. Apple doesn't need to *do* much of anything.. (driver support for the audio, video, tracking) except stay out of the ***** way? I'd almost prefer that? I think most people would?
If the Headset becomes a popular VR option in the existing PC games market, and the Headset is selling well to Apple's Fitness-focused market, game devs will start to make games that run on the device hardware itself? If it doesn't, no real loss, as again, that's probably not where Apple's focus is going to be with this device anyway?
Shrug.
It's going to be fun to watch it all unfold regardless, right?
I've got my popcorn ready.
Everything was going well until you talked about the device connecting to a PC, then I just laughed my head off. Are you serious?? You think Apple is going to allow it's VR device to connect to PC's??? Never going to happen. Apple want's it's users to stay within it's own ecosystem.
Don't get me wrong.. I'm not saying that Apple cares about the Headset being used for gaming at all. Have I not used the terms "Fitness+" and "Health/Fitness/Lifestyle" enough in all my posts in this thread yet?
Shrug.
I'm also not saying that Apple has a good track record of staying out of its own way.. even at the expense of sales/reputation (cough *butterfly keyboard* cough)
I'm just saying that if Apple wants the Headset to be on the gaming community radar at all, allowing existing users in that existing VR market to use it with the games and high end sim hardware/software they already own costs Apple nothing in the long run? It's a cheep investment in the future of the device..Those users raving about how great the Headset is will only attract developers to the RealityOS platform with better games/sims/experiences made for that platform, that those passionate users will then buy and use... a lot. In the long run, it will get them MORE engaged and more tied into the Apple ecosystem, not less.
Again - If the Headset becomes a popular VR option in the existing PC games market, and the Headset is selling well to Apple's Fitness-focused market, game devs will start to make more/better titles that run on the Headset/RelaityOS hardware itself. If it doesn't, no real loss, as again, that's probably not where Apple's focus is going to be with this device anyway?
But.. its an opportunity to do more, with very little risk/expense, so why not?
Apple just needs to get out of their own way again, like they did with the iPod.
Will that happen?
Probably not.
Like I said, this is going to be fun to watch regardless. ;-)
1) That’s literally not what the article says, it says “That headset is said to be a niche product aimed at developers and high-end professionals”. The Mac Pro falls in exactly the same category
2) They have absolutely released hardware just for developers before, including the recent transition kits for ARM
EVT2 & planning to release this year? Hmmm… still have a good ways to go.
That’s plenty of time to be thrown off by any number of edge cases, supply chain issues, and manufacturing issues. (Remember iPhone 4 in White?)
I appreciate optimistic people, I do!
That’s plenty of time to be thrown off by any number of edge cases, supply chain issues, and manufacturing issues. (Remember iPhone 4 in White?)
I appreciate optimistic people, I do!
Even THOSE numbers represent exponential growth.
Growth indicates where the market is moving. It gives an indication of where it'll be.
I'd argue that they "chose" the smaller screen because they can't have their PC on the bus
And even on the sofa a phone is more comfortable to operate than a laptop. Using a laptop is simply more cumbersome as the device is bigger and cannot be held comfortably with 2 hands - you need to put it down somewhere. With the glasses you won't even have to hold the device so you get better "operating experience" than with the phone and you will get more screen real estate than on a laptop - it improves on the "better aspects" of both of these devices with none of their disadvantages.