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WSJ: Some Apple Vision Pro Buyers 'Feel Total Regret'
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I have zero regrets over my purchase, but I understand the frustrations. Before I proceed, I will say that I am not a gamer and primarily use my Vision Pro for work just because I love the Ultra Wide Display and don't have a desk setup in my home currently.
1. Comfortabality - This one doesn't impact me as much as it seems to impact others, but the fitting is so inconsistent (using either type of band) that sometimes I'll have huge red imprinting on my face. So, I take it off, and then I walk around the office looking like I just got back from a weekend on the ski slopes. (The battery being detached has been a pain at times, but I can live with it for now as a trade-off.)
2. Ease of Use - This is my 2nd biggest headache. It is too difficult to simply switch from working on my Mac to using my VP. I have to take it out of the case; ensure cameras and lenses are cleaned (optional task, I imagine); see if it turns on or if the battery is dead or just needs to be restarted; get the fitting right; and then connect to my Mac which can still be very hit or miss. And even if I'm not primarily using it for the Virtual Display, that's still more steps than I want to take to engage with my tech products.
3. Things to Do - The app development isn't there, and this is why mine has started to be used less frequently. My org currently uses Google Workspace (moving to Microsoft Exchange this year, I believe), and I can't share screens or do anything within Google Meet in Safari. I don't have Chrome. There are basic things you expect to be able to do across devices that just don't exist yet. And that's just from the office-work perspective. We all know about the lack of other apps and what was communicated upon introduction.
All that to say - I still think it is a great piece of tech. I still enjoy using it, and I don't really get eye fatigue or anything. And when traveling - I think it's a game changer. Do people think I look stupid? I'm sure. But the first time I wore it on a plane, I realized how amazing it can be in certain situations. To be able to go anywhere and have a workspace like the Ultra Wide Virtual Display - that's huge for me.
Thanks to AI coding tools, I've started creating some apps for personal use to fill gaps where possible.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to this: the technology is not where it needs to be to put all this functionality into a practical and comfortable wearable. A lot of us knew that going into this; general consumers may have been disappointed. We shall see if Google/Samsung can do it better.
I'm just hoping for a decent trade-in value if/when an improved option is released (not betting on that for various reasons). I don't have any interest in a "lighter" VP that gives up functionality or sacrifices quality, although I might could be persuaded to grab a set built primarily for turning my Mac into a huge display if the price was right and they looked more like regular glasses.
1. Comfortabality - This one doesn't impact me as much as it seems to impact others, but the fitting is so inconsistent (using either type of band) that sometimes I'll have huge red imprinting on my face. So, I take it off, and then I walk around the office looking like I just got back from a weekend on the ski slopes. (The battery being detached has been a pain at times, but I can live with it for now as a trade-off.)
2. Ease of Use - This is my 2nd biggest headache. It is too difficult to simply switch from working on my Mac to using my VP. I have to take it out of the case; ensure cameras and lenses are cleaned (optional task, I imagine); see if it turns on or if the battery is dead or just needs to be restarted; get the fitting right; and then connect to my Mac which can still be very hit or miss. And even if I'm not primarily using it for the Virtual Display, that's still more steps than I want to take to engage with my tech products.
3. Things to Do - The app development isn't there, and this is why mine has started to be used less frequently. My org currently uses Google Workspace (moving to Microsoft Exchange this year, I believe), and I can't share screens or do anything within Google Meet in Safari. I don't have Chrome. There are basic things you expect to be able to do across devices that just don't exist yet. And that's just from the office-work perspective. We all know about the lack of other apps and what was communicated upon introduction.
All that to say - I still think it is a great piece of tech. I still enjoy using it, and I don't really get eye fatigue or anything. And when traveling - I think it's a game changer. Do people think I look stupid? I'm sure. But the first time I wore it on a plane, I realized how amazing it can be in certain situations. To be able to go anywhere and have a workspace like the Ultra Wide Virtual Display - that's huge for me.
Thanks to AI coding tools, I've started creating some apps for personal use to fill gaps where possible.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to this: the technology is not where it needs to be to put all this functionality into a practical and comfortable wearable. A lot of us knew that going into this; general consumers may have been disappointed. We shall see if Google/Samsung can do it better.
I'm just hoping for a decent trade-in value if/when an improved option is released (not betting on that for various reasons). I don't have any interest in a "lighter" VP that gives up functionality or sacrifices quality, although I might could be persuaded to grab a set built primarily for turning my Mac into a huge display if the price was right and they looked more like regular glasses.
I was there. I just disagree with the idea that it's a killer app. The iPhone was a killer platform. It changed my life and it changed the world. But some of what makes iPhone killer didn't happen in the first iteration. You had to attach a cable in order to sync it to your computer. It didn't get a decent camera until the iPhone 4 (and the camera is a bigger part of how I use my iPhone than the Music app).
Apple's Vision Pro headset has left many early adopters expressing dissatisfaction over its weight, limited use cases, and sparse software ecosystem, according to a new article from The Wall Street Journal.
In the year following the device's launch, user feedback suggests that it has failed to meet expectations for comfort, software support, and social acceptance. In interviews conducted by The Wall Street Journal, early buyers of the Vision Pro reported that the device now sits largely unused due to a range of practical issues. Dustin Fox, a real estate agent in Centreville, Virginia, said:
He explained that he was initially drawn to the device's novelty and potential productivity benefits, but found the physical experience of wearing the headset unsustainable for extended sessions. The Vision Pro weighs approximately 600 to 650 grams (1.3 to 1.4 pounds), depending on the light seal and headband configuration. This is considerably heavier than typical head-mounted consumer electronics, and the front-heavy distribution has become a recurring complaint.
Tovia Goldstein, a 24-year-old based in New York City, said that his experience watching content on the headset was also limited by discomfort and an insufficient number of apps to make it worthwhile.
When he retrieves the device to investigate any new apps that have been added to the visionOS App Store, he noted the lengthy startup time as a deterrent, citing the need to connect the external battery and wait several minutes before the device is ready to use.
The Vision Pro debuted with high visibility, including a flagship store event in New York City attended by Apple CEO Tim Cook. In the weeks following the launch, users were spotted wearing the headset in public spaces such as malls, restaurants, and sports events, but several buyers said that public enthusiasm quickly diminished.
Fox said that he considered selling his Vision Pro, but resale values had fallen significantly below the original price.
Another early adopter, Anshel Sag, a technology analyst based in San Diego, used the Vision Pro for inflight entertainment but eventually abandoned it due to social discomfort and practicality issues.
The Vision Pro's travel case, sold separately for $199, is also large; it measures in at roughly 12 inches by 9 inches by 6.5 inches.
Anthony Racaniello, a media studio operator from Philadelphia, attempted to use the headset in the workplace and during air travel but experienced both social alienation and practical challenges. During one nearly six-hour flight, he said a flight attendant ignored him during beverage service.
He later sold his Vision Pro for $1,900 — a 46% loss from the original purchase price — and said he did not miss it.
Yam Olisker, a 20-year-old YouTuber from Israel, flew to New York to purchase the Vision Pro at launch and obtained Tim Cook's signature on both his iPhone and the Vision Pro box.
That being said, he does not regret the purchase and enjoys watching movies with his Vision Pro, especially 3D films like Metallica, which he said makes it feel "like you're at the concert." Nevertheless, the weight remains an issue, and he has to lie in bed to mitigate its effect when watching movies.
Although Apple's work on a substantially enhanced Vision Pro model has apparently stalled, there are strong indications that the company will release "an incremental update to the product with limited changes to its physical design," such as a chip upgrade, according to The Information. Corroborating this, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman have said that a more iterative second-generation Vision Pro is in active development, adding the M5 chip and little else.
This updated model is expected to reuse most of its components from the first-generation Vision Pro to offset the surplus inventory in Apple's supply chain. Gurman said the refreshed device could launch between fall 2025 and spring 2026.
Article Link: WSJ: Some Apple Vision Pro Buyers 'Feel Total Regret'
Call me crazy, but I see almost zero use cases for VR. Once it’s in a lightweight package… maybe. Would have to be super high fidelity. Even then unless it wasn’t isolating to wear there’s just too much social pressure pushing back. The tech needs to get vastly better before people will be interested.
In the 2000's this was not some big drawback
You can't look at stuff like this through a current lens.
It was a drawback, because other phones at the time didn't need to be synched. There were still a lot of people who just wanted a phone to make phone calls and thought the rest was nonsense. A person I worked with in England said people with iPhones looked as though they were holding a hamster and rubbing its belly. (Another person I worked for was so excited that I had the new iPad that I gave her the box it came in --which had a life-size photo-- so she and her husband could practice gestures on it).
Smart phones didn't outsell feature phones until 2013.
The iPhone was a big hit, but for all the lines I stood in to get various models, and all the times I stayed up until 2 in the morning to make sure I got a Day One delivery, there were hordes of people who either shook their heads at people like me, or were blissfully unaware of the hype around iPhone.
you know what, you never had the original iPhone. You probably didn't own one until the 4 series. I don't think you're speaking from experience, you're just being contrarian and some of what you write is a dead giveaway (it wasn't the Music app back then).
So what point are you trying to make? There are no real parallels to be drawn between Vision Pro and the iPhone.
Generous estimates put Vison Pro sales at 450K, iPhone did more than ten million in the first year. Devs flocked to the platform when the app store launched because the user growth was huge.
You also have to factor in Vision Pro launching when Apple has a userbase in the billions, that wasn't the case when the iPhone launched.
If there are no real parallels to draw between the two, why are so many people comparing them?
I actually prefer to compare the Vision Pro with the first iPad, because the iPad came into a market able to run iPhone apps, which made it useful even before there were many dedicated apps for iPad.
The current price will keep it from following the same trajectory as the iPad, but as with the iPad future version of Apple Vision will address problems in the first version as well as bringing new features and functionality.
Part of the issue is the space for development has narrowed since the iPhone/iPad launched.
Firstly Apple has dumped, and continues to dump, all over their relationship with the developer community. This was in a much healthier place at the launch of the iPad/iPhone.
Secondly for some apps, think Video/Music streaming, have a ton of engineering overhead. The likes of Netflix and Youtube have both got iOS and Android apps, the web, then they've got to support, webOS, Samsung Tizen, Fire TV, Roku, Google TV etc where they will already have an existing user base to support.
It's a chicken and egg situation, it won't get the dev support without the user base but it is going to struggle for the user base without the app support.
The iPhone and iPad were just way more compelling form factors, for most people. Even without the native app support, it was email, a real browser, digital music, video and a camera all in their pocket.
Personally I think they have focussed too much on the wrong thing. If i'm running Apple, i'm throwing the kitchen sink at a competitor product to the Meta Ray bans. That kind of device has a much better shot at being a mainstream hit I think
You know what, you're completely wrong about that. And if you're willing to state so confidently as a fact something you're wrong about, how can anyone trust you on anything?
It's the Music app now, and now is when I use the Camera app a lot.
I barely used the camera on the first iPhone and the iPhone 3G because it was so bad. I skipped the 3GS and bought the 4
I love my AVP. I use it many times per week as a monitor for my laptop. It is a wonderful way to work, especially with music playing. I feel fortunate that I can afford one and I understand that others may feel differently.
Oh, and I would NEVER wear this device in public, LOL
Oh, and I would NEVER wear this device in public, LOL
Who knows -- it's a bad comparison.
I think people who like the AVP really want to believe it's some "next iPhone" and it very much is not.
The App Store killed both of these platforms btw
I am still happy using it.
I'm not interested in the chatter of the newspaper. Complaining unifies today's society in the West.
The WSJ couldn't resist ingratiating itself with disingenuous journalism this time.
I'm not interested in the chatter of the newspaper. Complaining unifies today's society in the West.
The WSJ couldn't resist ingratiating itself with disingenuous journalism this time.
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I agree.
The Iphone excelled in versatility. Even the Ipad is a pretty versatile item.
But so far the AVP seems to have just a few niches were it really shines, being cumbersome in other areas reduce its appeal significantly.
In my opinion Apple should have noticed this in advance and pitched it as a valuable tool for these niches, and expanded it from there over the next iterations.
This. Apple rushed this product to market when the tech was still 5-7 years away because Cook wanted to be able to say that it launched under him. The panels, battery, processing and even pass-through AR is unlikely to exist before 2029, at the earliest, with some roadmaps at 2032…
Plenty of incredible use cases for AR/VR that will be world changing. The problem is the current tech is crude, bulky and limited. It’s worth revisiting in 5-7 years and even that might be a little too soon.
I don’t care where you stand on the Vision Pro or Apple. This is trash journalism.
“Some people don’t like a product.”
That’s every product ever sold. I haven’t turned my MacBook Pro on in two years. Is Apple circling the laptop drain? Some people don’t ultimately like something they didn’t try to return?
I use mine daily and the only time I don’t is when I’m too busy to consume media. I take it I’m not going to get a headline. 😂
“Some people don’t like a product.”
That’s every product ever sold. I haven’t turned my MacBook Pro on in two years. Is Apple circling the laptop drain? Some people don’t ultimately like something they didn’t try to return?
I use mine daily and the only time I don’t is when I’m too busy to consume media. I take it I’m not going to get a headline. 😂
The problem is Apple half-assing it... They should have partnered with companies and game developers to bring great apps day one to the vision and keep them coming. The majority of the apps while very cool, were demo nonsense. Developers aren't going to spend the money to make native apps for a device that no one has. No one will buy a device if there aren't good apps for it... see the problem apple.
A perfect summary of the problem and very little is going to change on this organically.
Apple is FLUSH with cash.
It's inexcusable that they aren't willing to pour major resources into starting the flywheel of dev interest > cool and useful apps > customer interest.
Of course, a key component here is getting out hardware that's way less expensive ... or eating it on current models (as Console makers often do).
Apple fan boy, not going to, lie. Tried it in store, was blown away and promptly got a Meta Quest 3 512GB. The money saved and the "almost as good" experience I get from the MQ3 is a no brainer. Spent an additional $70 for battery mounted head gear that takes ALL the weight off the face, I can wear this for hours without any issue. Ultimately it depends on how you use it. I mainly game on mine so going Meta was the logical choice.