Last Week in AVP #5: Apple Vision Pro Component Costs, Early Sales Numbers, Light Seal Measurements Compared, Effects on Eye Health, and More!
Headlines
Apple’s Vision Pro VR component costs revealed (source)
With the cost estimation, we can gauge the display cost will add up to approximately $530, accounting for 35% of the total bill of material (BOM) costs of the Apple Vision Pro set.
Comparatively, the Sony PS VR2’s OLED panel cost is 30% of the total BOM cost. The LTPS TFT LCD panel in Meta’s Quest 2 is 18% of its total BOM cost, and the OLEDoS display in Huawei’s Vision VR device is 39% of its total BOM cost
This reaffirms Apple's focus on superior display quality as the key differentiator from other VR headsets.
Ming-Chi Kuo reports on AVP sales (source)
U.S. shipments are expected to be 200,000–250,000 units this year, better than Apple’s original estimate of 150,000–200,000 units
According to my survey of the repair/refurbishment production line, the current return rate for Vision Pro is less than 1%, with no anomalies.
Apple’s new Vision Pro project is expected to go into mass production in 4Q25–1Q26, with Hon Hai receiving the new product introduction (NPI).
It is worth noting that 20–30% of the returns are due to users not knowing how to set up Vision Pro.
Keeping in mind that while Ming-Chi Kuo has a very good track record on supply chain leaks and activities, I would take his report on customer feedback with a huge grain of salt. I personally do not believe that almost a third of the customers returned the unit because they failed to set it up.
In fact, Apple Vision Pro has one of the most seamless setup I have witnessed in any Apple product. The device is fully setup without requiring the user to enter their iCloud credentials. It’s automatically paired with your iPhone. And the hand and eye calibration is easy to follow.
Reviews and Discussions
In-depth review from Norman Chan
The much awaited in-depth review from long time VR user has arrived at just under 2 hours of technical analysis.
It is at once a developer kit as well as an early adopter device to tap into the latest that’s out there
Kudos to Norman for recognizing that this isn’t just a developer kit (you know my opinion on that) but the device is also entirely justified for early adopters.
Another keen insight comes at the end of the review, recognizing that optical passthrough will not be the end-all be-all:
And it's my personal belief that it's not going to be a convergence to a single device, you know, that meta doesn’t make the Meta Ray-Ban with Meta sunglasses and the Quest Pro as two product lines that will eventually become one product. But they are kind of going to be two product lines that, well, they may share technologies in terms of world tracking and a user interface. They're going to be as different as having a watch to a laptop.
This is in stark contrast with Verge’s review of Apple Vision Pro which I believe will not stand the test of time:
Apple's been talking about AR forever, and the true goal of AR is optical AR where light passes directly through a lens to your eyes and digital information gets layered on top of it.
Where Nilay miscalculated is that a flawed video passthrough is still substantially better than having perfect optical passthrough with compromised digital overlays (on brightness, resolution, refresh rate etc) for stationary indoor uses.
There will be a place for optical passthrough products. However, they won't overshadow video passthrough headsets, similar to how a laptop hasn't replaced a desktop. As Steve Jobs frequently pointed out, products are about trade-offs. Both approaches will exist as long as there are trade-offs to be made (which is to say a long time).
IGN reviews AVP
IGN provides a fair and rather typical review of AVP. Not a lot of commentary stands out other than the interesting poll they had on their review.
It’s fascinating that despite Apple’s heavy emphasis on spatial computing, most users ultimately are drawn to AVP for it’s consumption capabilities (which is well over 50% if we were to combine Immersive Moves + Movies in virtual theatre). It is my long held opinion that Apple missed on the AVP launch marketing. They shouldn’t shy away from pitching the AVP as the ultimate home theatre device at a fraction of the cost of any home theatre system (upwards of tens of thousands).
From The Community
Multi-window mirror from mac (source)
If you are looking for a way to mirror multiple windows, checkout this app.
Custom Ikea tray (source)
Dogs experiencing mixed reality (source)
Harvard Professor Steven Pinker on Apple Vision Pro
AVP replacement box and process
Hand Tracking comparison, Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3 (source)
Spatial localization of audio (choir simulation) source
Apple Vision Pro + violin (source)
Light seals models explained
I’ve not seen actual measurements done comparing different models of light seals. This video finally explained it in a way I can understand. I’ve sketched up a diagram on what the measurements mean (excuse my horrible sketching).
Real life applications of AVP (source)
All the ways you can Record 3D spatial videos without iPhone
Apple Vision Pro racing test
Penn Jillette discusses Apple Vision Pro
Its one of those things that works almost always … more than 98% of the time it works. But boy that’s not enough. You know, when you are thinking quickly and trying to grab something and move it somewhere else and you have a hiccup, it really really slows you down.
Communities don’t like hearing it, but I have the same critiques as Penn from the day I unboxed the device. The input system for AVP is just not good enough by Apple standards. Unfortunately anything short of 100% accuracy is simply not sufficient for a computer input system. I hope that we’ll eventually get there.
AVP and eye health source
There is no scientific evidence to suggest that any digital screens, including a tool like VR devices, are harmful to eye health.
— Dr. Arvind Saini, clinical spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
Flyby experience of the Grand Canyon (source)
Apple Vision Pro at a wedding (source)
That’s all for now, feel free to leave me any feedback and discussions! 🙏
Until next week 👋