On Thursday, Ming-Chi Kuo, a prominent Apple analyst at TFI Securities, stated on Twitter that Apple’s highly anticipated mixed-reality headset might not be prepared for the company’s June WWDC event.
According to a tweet from Kuo, Apple is not optimistic about receiving the same level of reception with their mixed-reality headset as they did with the groundbreaking release of the iPhone. As a result, production has been delayed until the “mid-to-late” third quarter of 2023. Kuo also mentioned that mass assembly has been pushed back by an additional one to two months, with a new timeline of mid-to-late Q3.
In the past, Apple has often provided previews of its upcoming products several months before their official launch. For instance, the Apple Watch was unveiled in September 2014, but it was not made available to consumers until April 2015.
Kuo identified several major concerns for Apple regarding the mixed-reality headset, including the broader economic downturn, compromises made to ensure mass production, uncertainty about the ecosystem and developer reception, and the relatively high expected price point. Kuo predicts that Apple will price the headset at $3,000 to $4,000 or higher.
Kuo reported that Apple’s sales projection for the mixed-reality headset in 2023 is at most 300,000 units. However, Bloomberg reported on Sunday that Apple executives are anticipating sales of “about a million units” of the headset in its first full year on the market. Bloomberg also mentioned that the headset could potentially be called the “Reality Pro” or “Reality One.”
Bloomberg reported that Apple’s best-case scenario for the mixed-reality headset is for its growth trajectory to follow that of the Apple Watch, which started as a relatively small part of the company’s business but eventually became a significant centerpiece.
Kuo is widely recognized as one of the most reliable analysts when it comes to Apple’s plans and has provided insights into the company’s changing strategy for the highly anticipated mixed-reality headset. As of now, Apple has not provided any comment on the matter.
