by Tim Hardwick
Apple could offer a cheaper version of its Apple Vision Pro headset by making the device reliant on a tethered iPhone or Mac, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Last week, a report claimed that Apple had suspended work on the second-generation Apple Vision Pro in order to focus on bringing a cheaper model to market. However, Gurman claims Apple shifted resources to developing a cheaper model even before the Vision Pro was released, and he has now offered some more details on how Apple plans to build a more affordable spatial computing unit.
Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says that a prototype lower-cost headset, codenamed N107, has a narrower field of view compared to Vision Pro.
Apple is also considering making this version more reliant on a tethered Mac or iPhone. "That would let Apple save money on the processing power and components needed to make the Vision Pro a fully standalone product," he argues.
Gurman says that Apple is still struggling to bring the cost down while retaining key features. But if it can, Apple plans to launch the cheaper headset as early as the end of 2025. Indeed, this has been the plan "since before the Vision Pro was unveiled last year," he adds.
Gurman doubled down on his reaction to last week's report by noting that Apple has no plans to abandon the high end of the headset market, and while it's "less of a priority," Apple is still working on a second-generation Vision Pro, codenamed N109.
This model is said to look similar to the current Vision Pro, but has a faster processor and improvements to the external cameras. The company reportedly plans to release the Apple Vision Pro 2 by the end of 2026 at the earliest.
Related Roundup: Apple Vision Pro
Buyer's Guide: Vision Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forum: Apple Vision Pro
[ 207 comments ]
Popular Stories
Alleged First Look at Apple Watch X / Series 10 With 2-Inch Display
Wednesday June 26, 2024 2:44 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple is rumored to be planning a revamp of the Apple Watch for the device's tenth anniversary, and 91mobiles claims to have sourced CAD renders of what could be the "Apple Watch X" or Apple Watch Series 10 from industry insiders. The site claims that the renders are of a "larger" model featuring a 2-inch display. The current Apple Watch Series 9 has a 1.7-inch display, while the Apple Watch ...
Read Full Article • 182 comments
Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max and More
Tuesday June 25, 2024 12:35 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware update for several products, including the Lightning and USB-C versions of the AirPods Pro 2, the first-generation AirPods Pro, the AirPods Max, the second and third-generation AirPods, the Beats Fit Pro, and the PowerBeats Pro. The second-generation AirPods Pro models, the PowerBeats Pro, and the Beats Fit Pro now have firmware version 6F8, up from 6F7,...
Read Full Article • 50 comments
iOS 18 to Bring These 5 New Features to AirPods Pro
Wednesday June 26, 2024 6:59 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's upcoming iOS 18 software update is packed with features for supported iPhones, but it also promises to make your AirPods Pro experience better with a handful of sophisticated new capabilities that draw from machine learning improvements and AI enhancements. The following five AirPods Pro features are expected to arrive later this year, when iOS 18 is released to the general public in ...
Read Full Article • 54 comments
Everything New in iOS 18 Beta 2
Monday June 24, 2024 12:52 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released the second betas of iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 to developers, and the software adds support for new features that Apple is working on, plus it tweaks some of the interface changes that have been made in the updates. Apple will refine iOS 18 over the course of the next few months, with multiple changes and refinements expected from now until September. We've highlighted...
Read Full Article • 124 comments
Thursday June 27, 2024 2:49 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
There appears to be an ongoing outage with international roaming across multiple cellular networks, with Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile customers abroad complaining about the issue on social networks and cellular community forums. Customers traveling internationally have been without service since late Wednesday for hours at a time, with many losing cellular, text, and data. That has left many...
Read Full Article • 62 comments
Top Rated Comments
Etc_
4 days ago at 04:07 am
Tethered. A word you will never ever see in any Apple ad. Ever.
"We created a new way to connect your iPhone to Vision Non-Pro and we call it Magic Link."
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
toobravetosave
4 days ago at 04:05 am
just go outside and look around and save the entire cost + tax
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fatTribble
4 days ago at 04:11 am
So you can upgrade the processor for your Vision by upgrading your iPhone?
Sounds great to me! ??
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nikaru
4 days ago at 04:22 am
- Remove expensive CNC machined aluminium and use plastic.
- Remove the external display and glass front.
- Remove battery and storage case from the box.
- Remove M1 chip and let the iPhone handle all the compute power needed.
=
Vision for less than 1000$
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gleepskip
4 days ago at 04:24 am
This is hilarious ? and people will pay for it!
It's not as hilarious as people paying $4000 for the AVP.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
amaze1499
4 days ago at 04:04 am
Tethered. A word you will never ever see in any Apple ad. Ever.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments
'); }
Next Article
iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 Include Support for Formatting External Drives
