1 min readApple has set a date for the launch of its Vision Pro headset.
The company will officially begin taking pre-orders for its first spatial computer on 19 January 2024 ahead of a 2 February launch.
Unfortunately, most Aussies are set to miss out. Apple's first wave of Vision Pro headsets are only going to be available in North America. Unless you're willing to jump through some hoops, you're probably better off waiting and hoping for a local launch.
The other bad news here is that the Vision Pro didn't get any cheaper while you weren't looking. At launch, Apple are charging $3,499 for the headset. That sum also gets you a battery, cover, polishing cloth, charger and a handful of other cosmetic accessories. Reading lenses costs an extra $99 on top of that while prescriptions are even more expensive at $149.
In any case, the price-tag here is several times the one attached to the competition out there from the likes of Meta and something that's going to keep plenty of consumers from picking one up on curiosity alone.
Nevertheless, the glossy potential of Apple's AR headset is going to hit the messy reality of the market sooner rather than later. The original announcement of the Vision Pro was preceded by years of speculation that the entry of Apple into the VR and AR space would help the technology break through to the mainstream in a way that it hasn't been able to in the past.
In less than month, we're going to find out whether that's really the case.
