Apple reportedly slows down Vision Pro production — a more affordable version may be in the works
The company could "wind down" production as soon as November.

Apple is slowing production on its Vision Pro headset and may possibly stop manufacturing it by November, according to a report from The Information citing “multiple people” who build components for the hardware.
The report suggests that the easement started this summer. One factory employee allegedly told the publication that they stopped producing certain components in May, and a warehouse was packed with “tens of thousands of undelivered parts.” Employees at suppliers told The Information that they have enough components for Apple to put together between 500,000 and 600,000 headsets.
It seems that Apple expects that to be enough to cover demand for a while. On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal published a profile of Apple CEO Tim Cook in which he said that “obviously, I’d like to sell more” and that “At $3,500, it’s not a mass-market product.” Instead, he acknowledged that it’s meant for early adopters and that the ecosystem is being built.
Luxshare, a Chinese manufacturer that performs the final assembly of the Vision Pro for Apple, is reportedly making about 1,000 headsets daily, down from 2,000 at the device’s peak.
Apple has taken its production line apart, and it’s possible that if demand were to increase, the company could ramp up production. Apple could also likely use similar components in a cheaper model or release a minor upgrade without major changes to the headset itself, possibly just bumping processors.
The Vision Pro received mixed reviews, with critics generally blown away by the quality of the screens, intuitive gestures, and lack of controllers. But with the $3,500 price tag, developers seemed happy to wait and see, with big names like Netflix and YouTube pointing Vision Pro users to their websites in Safari. No killer app ever materialized, though the Vision Pro’s biggest fans seem to appreciate the ability to use the headset as a high-quality, free-floating Mac display.
In the meantime, Apple has reportedly turned its attention to a cheaper version of the Vision Pro. A lower price tag may attract more interest in the device, which could lead to more developers being willing to invest in making software. That mass-market product isn’t here yet, but hopefully, it’s on the way.
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Andrew E. Freedman is a senior editor at Tom's Hardware focusing on laptops, desktops and gaming. He also keeps up with the latest news. A lover of all things gaming and tech, his previous work has shown up in Tom's Guide, Laptop Mag, Kotaku, PCMag and Complex, among others. Follow him on Threads @FreedmanAE and Mastodon @FreedmanAE.mastodon.social.
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Stomx World is waiting for high resolution AR gasses not that motorcycle helmets which also cost you arm and leg. And kidneyReply -
Giroro I'm surprised to find out that they're still making these. I doubt they've sold through the initial batch.Reply
I thought Apple Vision Pro was supposed to be one of those cash grab viral marketing gimmicks. Like the Dyson face mask, the KFC "game console", or the Razer face mask. You send out a few hundred of them to influencers for free, list an offensively high price to troll twitter, never actually sell them, and importantly, never make more of them. -
JamesJones44
I would argue the world is waiting for AR/VR without having to wear anything on their headStomx said:World is waiting for high resolution AR gasses not that motorcycle helmets which also cost you arm and leg. And kidney -
ekio Make the cheaper version your priority!Reply
The current version is just a joke. Who can spend that much in a VR headset ??
For the cheaper version, keep the 4k OLED screens however, that's the only selling point for the Vision product line. -
Stomx
Just the existing AR of sunglasses type are great if they were 4k at least. Otherwise you see their gargantuan size pixels and the texts are unreadable. I afraid that even 8k is needed for the pixelation to be not noticeable.JamesJones44 said:I would argue the world is waiting for AR/VR without having to wear anything on their head -
Heat_Fan89 Sure, I like the idea of VR but I have yet to buy a VR product, regardless of who makes it. I refuse to bow to Dorksville, it's the same reason why I never speak to my phone to call up a digital assistant. Until the technology gets to wearing a pair of glasses, I have NO interest in VR.Reply
I also saw the writing on the wall and was waiting for this day. Apple's Vision Pro was a product in search of a solution. -
Stomx
Just the quantum dot QLED are completely fine for the screens. They are as vivid as OLED, do have enough high contrast (specifically for AR where ambien light gets through anyway), last longer, have no imprint problems and are much brighterekio said:Make the cheaper version your priority!
The current version is just a joke. Who can spend that much in a VR headset ??
For the cheaper version, keep the 4k OLED screens however, that's the only selling point for the Vision product line. -
ekio
VR without PURE black level is simply diminished VR.Stomx said:Just the quantum dot QLED are completely fine for the screens. They are as vivid as OLED, do have enough high contrast (specifically for AR where ambien light gets through anyway), last longer, have no imprint problems and are much brighter
I know, I had 4 headsets (3 LCD and 1 OLED).
And my old Quest 1 (OLED) is still my preferred experience despite all the other issues, because being in total darkness when the screen is black is a way underestimated experience. Most people never had OLED VR don't know the difference.
For monitors, phones, tvs, etc I don't mind LCD, but for VR, once you go pure black level, you never go back. -
husker
Just Curious: Are you talking brain implant, or just straight up replacing eyeballs ala cyberpunk?JamesJones44 said:I would argue the world is waiting for AR/VR without having to wear anything on their head