A $2,000 plastic Apple Vision could be an upgrade, not a downgrade

Mark Gurman didn’t sound overly enthusiastic when he reported his expectation that a lower-priced Apple Vision product would be released next year, but it might just be the model to push my button.

Gurman said Apple expects sales of the $2,000 model to double those of the Vision Pro, “but that’s not saying much”…

Gurman’s newsletter didn’t add much to what we already expect.

I expect a low-end Vision headset to arrive as soon as next year, with a second-generation Vision Pro, with a faster chip, in 2026. The low-end model would cost around $2,000 and likely use an inferior processor and cheaper materials It would also lack EyeSight, a gee-whiz feature that shows the user’s eyes on the outside of the headset. With the lower price, Apple expects unit sales of the device to be at least twice the level of the Vision Pro. But that doesn’t mean much.

Normally, swapping premium materials like aluminum and glass for cheaper ones (probably plastic) would be a downgrade. But in the case of Apple Vision, I think it would be the opposite.

One of the biggest complaints everyone has about the Vision Pro is that it gets uncomfortable to wear for extended periods, with some saying they can only wear it for 30-60 minutes at a time.

When I tried it myself, I found that an hour’s use was enough time to start feeling discomfort.

It was a relatively warm afternoon by UK standards, and I was certainly feeling the heat with my upper face enclosed by the unit. This mirrors my experience with the Meta Quest 2, which also feels warm.

The weight of the Vision Pro is also something I felt after the first 30 minutes. I run my Quest with the optional rear battery pack, and while this adds to the overall weight, that mass is split evenly between the front and rear. The Vision Pro, on the other hand, is very front-heavy, and I was definitely starting to feel it, especially when looking down and then up.

If Apple drops EyeSight (which I find completely useless anyway), then it may lose the glass on the front of the device, which will help a lot with overall weight and weight balance. And if you change the aluminum casing to plastic, that makes both even better.

A switch to cheaper materials, then, could be an upgrade rather than a downgrade.

As for the sales forecast, it only doubles that of the Vision Pro, sure – it’s still a niche product. Even most Vision Pro owners seem to use it primarily for watching movies, which they can do with much greater comfort and much less cost with a face monitor like the Viture One XR.

But for me personally, the ability to have multiple monitors in a highly portable device has a major appeal. If the company can lower the price to $2,000 i improve the comfort to the point where it can be used all day, I’ll probably get my money’s worth.

Would you be in the market for a lighter $2,000 Apple Vision? Please take our survey and share your thoughts in the comments.

Photo by Bram Van Oost on Unsplash