How Apple Is Making the Successor to the Vision Pro Easier to Wear

Apple Vision Pro is set to go on sale in early 2024, but the iPhone maker is reportedly at work on a successor to the first-generation device. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman writes in his weekly Power On newsletter that Apple is focussing on lowering both the weight and size of the second-generation Vision Pro headset. On the other hand, Facebook parent Meta is working towards reducing the price of its upcoming headsets, shortly after the company unveiled the Meta Quest 3.

Unveiled earlier this year at Apple’s WWDC 2023 event in June, the Apple Vision Pro won’t go on sale for a few more months — but Apple is already working on a successor to the wearable device, according to details shared by Gurman. Testing has revealed that the weight and size of the Vision Pro has led to neck strain, and the second-generation device could have a lighter and smaller build.

Gurman also discusses some of the other hurdles that the Apple Vision Pro is facing, including users who wear spectacles. With the first-generation headset, users will have to purchase prescription lenses from Zeiss that will be attached to the headset magnetically. However, he points out that doing so could make sharing the device much harder, especially if two people have different prescription glasses.

An employee at Meta told Gurman that the company was watching Apple ahead of the debut of its wearable headset next year. Both devices are marketed towards customers who want either productivity or gaming, and Meta has reportedly shifted away from its metaverse pitch to align itself with its latest competitor, Apple.

While Apple is said to be working on reducing the size of its next headset, Meta is looking to make its next headset cheaper than the Quest 3, to make it more accessible to customers. According to Gurman, the company could achieve this by selling the headset without included controllers and requiring customers to purchase them separately.

Meta’s recently unveiled Ray-Ban sunglasses do not offer any AR functionality, aside from capturing images and videos, taking calls and listening to music. The company plans to launch glasses with AR displays by 2025, according to Gurman.