Apple officially opened the sale of the Vision Pro headset for $3,499 from February 3 in the US. The device ushers in what the company calls “the era of spatial computing.”
Loyal Apple fans lined up at App Stores in the US on February 3 to buy the Vision Pro headset. CEO Tim Cook appeared at the Manhattan store located on Fifth Avenue to celebrate and greet the crowd. At the Apple Store located in the Grove shopping center in Los Angeles, Apple employees applauded the first customers of the day.
Vision Pro is Apple’s first new product category since 2015: a $3,499 wearable model that combines virtual reality and augmented reality. For now, this is still a relatively niche market, with Meta Platforms dominating. But Apple hopes to use its cutting-edge technology – and its famous marketing muscle – to turn it into something bigger.
CEO Tim Cook (wearing glasses, standing in the middle) was present at the Apple Store New York on the opening day of Vision Pro sales. (Photo: X)
At the Apple store in New York, CEO Cook said that customers might be most impressed with the device’s interface, which he called “how you magically take control”. Vision Pro relies on eye movements and hand gestures to navigate users through an immersive experience.
Speaking to Bloomberg Television, he said it works the same way the mind works. “People put it on and immediately know how to use it.”
The launch of Vision Pro is not as grand as the iPhone and other devices. When the iPhone was first released in 2007, customers lined up at Apple Stores from New York to San Francisco, desperate to buy one. Meanwhile, the Vision Pro sale event attracted a small number of buyers and people who wanted to experience it.
However, Cook still compared the Vision Pro to other iconic Apple devices, including the Mac, iPod, and iPhone, saying that it will “join the pantheon of breakthrough products”.
“Apple Vision Pro brings together thousands of innovations to create a product the world has never seen before,” he said in a memo to employees after the launch. “It’s an extraordinary achievement… and many years in the making.”
Vision Pro has a more complex sales process than any previous Apple product. It includes 20 to 25 minute product demos showing videos and 3D applications in mixed reality. At the company’s largest stores in the US, Apple arranged circular seating and carpeting to give testers the feeling of being in a living room.
Previously, Apple had just reported fourth-quarter 2023 business results with better-than-expected iPhone sales, but the company is facing difficulties in China. Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri also signaled that sales in the current quarter would not be as strong as some analysts had estimated.
For now, the Vision Pro won’t be a big driver of sales. Its shipments may only fall into the hundreds of thousands this year, compared to hundreds of millions for the iPhone. However, it could make Apple the biggest player in the mixed reality market.
Analysts estimate Apple sold about 180,000 Vision Pro units during the pre-order period, which began in mid-January. Priced at $3,499, the device brought in more than $600 million in revenue.
“I think we’ll do well,” Cook said in New York after being asked about sales. “I think we’re doing well today.”
(Theo Bloomberg)
