Report claims Vision Pro sales have ‘fallen sharply’ as Apple struggles to whip up demand

Sales of Apple’s Vision Pro headset have been so low that the company has been forced to drastically cut its shipment forecasts, meaning it expects to sell far fewer than previously thought over the next year. That’s according to a recent report from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, and if it’s true it will come as a bitter blow to Apple and the device it sees as its “next big thing.”

Kuo is thought to have reliable sources inside Apple’s supply chain. In a post on Medium, he claimed that “Apple has cut its 2024 Vision Pro shipments to 400-450k units.” That’s well below the “market consensus of 700-800k units or more,” Kuo says.

The analyst pointed out that this cut has come before the Vision Pro has launched outside the United States, which means that “demand in the US market has fallen sharply beyond expectations.” If Apple has struggled to sell the Vision Pro on its home turf, will it be able to turn things around elsewhere?

Kuo didn’t give a reason for the apparently low shipments of the Vision Pro, but the device has come in for its fair share of criticism since launching. Complaints have focused on its high price and heavy weight, which can make it uncomfortable to wear over long periods of time.

Delays and disappointments

If Kuo’s report is correct, there’s no doubt that Apple will be disappointed at having to reduce the number of units it hopes to sell this year. The Vision Pro is easily one of the best and most powerful VR headsets on the market, and as we noted in our Apple Vision Pro review, it offers a compelling experience in a wide range of ways. Unfortunately for Apple, it seems that that has not been enough to boost sales.

Cutting the number of units Apple expects to sell will have a knock-on effect elsewhere, Kuo believes. For one thing, “there may be no new Vision Pro model in 2025,” the report states. The updated Vision Pro had been expected at some point in the second half of 2025, says Kuo, but that now looks increasingly in doubt.

Previously, Kuo had claimed that we would not see a Vision Pro with “significant changes” until 2027. An update would come in late 2025 or early 2026, he believed, but Apple would focus on improving the production process, meaning “the user experience will not differ from the current model.”

Kuo didn’t mention whether the rumored cheaper Vision Pro headset has also been delayed. This model is expected to cut some of the high-end features in the Vision Pro in order to bring the price down and could be one way for Apple to address the issue of low sales. It now looks like that device can’t come soon enough for the company.

Update 4-24-2024: Some believe the current sales projections are in alignment with original estimates.

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