At Meta's Connect conference this week, the announcement of Apple's Vision Pro mixed-reality headset in June created a lot of excitement. Tom Symonds, the CEO of Immerse, a British VR firm, said, "It's creating quite a stir in the industry." Meta's newest Quest 3 VR Headset retails for $499, which is $200 higher than the previous version, but still significantly less costly than Apple's version.
At Meta's Connect conference this week, which centred on virtual reality and the metaverse, all eyes were on Apple. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg eagerly unveiled the Quest 3 VR headset, set to be available in October for $499. The Quest Store, Meta's VR app store, has generated $2 billion in revenue since its launch in 2019. Notably, this year is different from the event in 2022, with a more distinct idea of Apple's impending engagement in the VR sector. Apple declared the Vision Pro mixed-reality headset at $3,499 for its release next year. Given Apple's legacy in making top-notch consumer gadgets and its successful history with hardware, anticipation is now brewing around the company and the VR industry.
Though VR and mixed reality may remain a small market for some time, conversations at the Meta headquarters in Menlo Park, California this week indicate a shift in attitude for developers and VR companies regarding potential for growth. Tom Symonds, CEO of UK-based VR firm Immerse, remarked "there's certainly curiosity with Apple entering the market. Apple has always had the knack for blending hardware and software effortlessly". Before the Vision Pro announcement, the VR industry had been struggling, with VCs pulling investments and declines in Web3 and crypto projects. Meta continues to lose billions of dollars a quarter establishing its vision of a metaverse, with Zuckerberg unwilling to slacken the pace, provoking many financiers to worry regarding the continous expenditure.
In spite of the fact that Apple's product is still months away from being on sale and the number of people who will be able to get their hands on it remains uncertain, the company's presence in the market has granted some legitimacy to Meta's endeavors. This week, the company not only presented its most recent headset, but also the latest version of its Ray-Ban smart glasses, developed with EssilorLuxottica. The glasses, which will be available to buy starting October 17th for $299, will allow users to use Meta's AI software via their smartphones to identify landmarks or translate signs when gazing upon different objects.
It would be a "big loss of confidence" if Meta stopped investing heavily to push the VR market forward, according to Aneesh Kulkarni, chief technology officer of the VR training firm Strivr. Kulkarni commented, "Meta is pushing the bar, and who has the money to push the bar?" He further remarked that despite the fact that $2 billion of app store sales "may not sound like a lot compared to the Apple store," it's a noteworthy figure. Apple's developer billings and sales in 2022 are valued at an estimated $1.1 trillion due to the popularity of iPhone and iPad apps.Josette Seitz, a mixed-reality developer for the social impact company Baltu Technologies, stated that Apple could capitalize on businesses that are familiar with their products, such as those that use iPads for inspections or other related services. Such companies could likely make a seamless transition to the costlier Vision Pro due to the devices' interoperability.Seitz indicated that the Vision Pro's high cost implies that it will likely be more of a product for businesses. She pointed out that it is essential to have multiple providers in the market, remarking, "There shouldn't just be one company. We can't have this be a monopoly system."Gaspar Ferreiro, a developer with the VR firm Coal Car Studios, labeled the Vision Pro's price "insane" and declared that Apple is taking a "big gamble". Ferreiro projected that certain businesses are likely to invest in Apple devices due to the company's reputation and prestige.Meta still has its obstacles. Despite the years of prior experience, the company has failed to make VR part of the mainstream. Ferreiro is uncertain that the improvements made in the Quest 3 as well as the additional cost of $200 for the Quest 3 over the cheaper Quest 2 will be attractive enough to pull in individuals who are not industry insiders or developers.One of the major advances of the Quest 3 over the previous version is its "passthrough" feature, allowing a person's field of vision to be transformed into a digital format, consequently permitting computer visuals to be superimposed onto the physical world. With the Quest 2, this form of viewing physical surroundings was blurred and lacked color, however, the Quest 3 offers a much clearer version which should make it more enjoyable to use.Ferreiro stated that this will permit developers to construct more appealing content and visually attractive experiences that combine the physical and digital worlds.
Jeffrey Morin, CEO of the Litesport VR fitness service, said the Quest 3 price is "just outside of my comfort zone for, like, me buying my kid a Christmas gift." Nonetheless, he concedes that the improved passthrough is very important for the company's upcoming mixed-reality app it built for Xponential Fitness, which will enable users to exercise with real personal trainers who can be virtually beamed into their homes. With regards to working with Apple, Morin suggested that Litesport will seek ways to develop for the Vision Pro as it advantages and the cost possibly drops to between $1,000 to $1,500 sometime in the future. At the moment, the cost is too elevated and the Vision Pro will require users to wear a battery pack, adding to the annoyance during a workout. Apple provides an edge as it has a base of customers who "are going to be way more likely to pay for a subscription," providing a stable stream of revenue, he stated. From Morin's experience thus far, most existing Quest customers are gamers who are more accustomed to making single app purchases.Morin mentioned that even though Apple's product does not exist yet, he has seen an uptick in the number of people using Litesports' VR fitness apps after it was declared, emphasizing the entire VR community's enthusiasm. "They fired up their headsets and they're, like, let me see what's out there again," Morin said.In the end, Apple's shift into VR illustrates that it is no longer "Mark's little toy anymore," as Morin phrases it. "Now it's everyone's."WATCH: The smart glasses unveiling was a 'big yawn' and Meta knows it
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