Reported by 21st Century Business Herald reporter Ni Yuqing and intern Zhu Ziye from Shenzhen
On the evening of January 19th, Apple's first MR headset device, Vision Pro, was ordered. In just half an hour, some areas were sold out, and the scene was extremely hot.
Despite a starting price of up to $3499 (approximately 25000 RMB), tech enthusiasts are still flocking to try Apple's defined space computing products. However, currently Vision Pro is only available for sale in the US market and will be released both online and offline on February 2nd.
On January 20th, when a 21st Century Business Herald reporter checked Apple's official website, it was found that if you choose to pick up goods from a physical store after booking, some areas will have to wait until February 8th to receive the goods, and if it is for express delivery, it will take 6-7 weeks to ship. On domestic e-commerce platforms such as Taobao and JD.com, purchasing links have appeared, with prices ranging from 38999 yuan to 89999 yuan.
Vision Pro is regarded by Apple as a next-generation computing platform, although controversial, it still has great appeal. Research firm TrendForce pointed out that this device is a key strategic layout for Apple to expand into the virtual reality market, and Apple is entering the VR/AR market as a pioneer in technological innovation. If the initial sales are strong, the shipment volume of Vision Pro may reach 500000 to 600000 units by 2024.
Ren Pan, co-founder of Xiaopai Technology, told 21st Century Business Herald reporters, "Apple views a market very maturely and will not rashly enter a field. Apple has been doing it for 8 to 9 years, cutting off many intermediate projects and ultimately launching Vision Pro. I believe Apple will lead the industry in the right direction."
Apple's Space Computing Era
At the same time as Vision Pro went on sale, Apple CEO Cook posted a short video of Vision Pro manufacturing on social media, covering multiple stages such as display screens, headband weaving, component polishing, and overall assembly. Meanwhile, Apple also released a nearly 10 minute video as a guide to using Vision Pro.
It can be seen that Apple is building momentum for the new MR category, and as smartphones enter the stock market, giants like Apple also need to accelerate their search for new innovative categories.
When the Vision Pro was first unveiled at the 2023 WWDC conference, Cook said, "The era of space computing has arrived." Apple's official website has also repeatedly emphasized in product introductions that Vision Pro is a revolutionary space computer that has changed the way people work, collaborate, connect, and entertain.
In terms of system and hardware, Vision Pro is equipped with an M2 chip, which provides a 3D user interface and input system based on Vision OS, and is completely controlled by the user's eyes, hands, and voice. The head display device also adopts an ultra-high resolution display system built on Apple chips, using micro OLED technology to package 23 million pixels into two displays.
At the same time, Vision Pro is also equipped with an eye tracking system and incorporates Apple's newly designed EyeSight feature, which makes the screen of the head display device appear transparent in close proximity to the outside world. This also means that the head display can interact with the real world.
In terms of software and ecosystem, the expected usage scenarios for Apple's headsets are still mainly in three areas: online office, audio-visual entertainment, and gaming.
Among them, video and gaming are important parts of Apple's new XR ecosystem. Vision Pro users can watch multiple 3D movies in the Apple TV application, access multiple games in the App Store and Apple Arcade, and also launch a new entertainment mode, Apple Immersive Video.
However, currently Vision Pro does not have native applications for Netflix, YouTube, or Spotify, and can only be accessed through web browsing. In fact, the shortage of applications has always been a pain point in the XR industry, but Apple has a huge developer base, and they are now actively developing. If a new software ecosystem can be established on the MR platform, Apple will also reshape the industry.
Counterpoint Research analysis suggests that "although the launch of Apple Vision Pro will not immediately change the overall industry landscape, it undoubtedly takes an important step forward and may guide the future development direction of the XR industry."
According to Counterpoint Research's forecast, the XR market's shipment volume will see a record increase in 2024 with the support of Apple Vision Pro, reaching 3.9 million units, achieving double-digit year-on-year growth on a smaller base.
Apple has caused a heatwave, but many major players in the VR industry are undergoing restructuring. Regarding the development trend of the market, Zhao Jun, CEO of TCL Huaxing, told 21st Century Business Herald reporters that the attitude towards XR increment space is still cautious and optimistic. PICO and META, as leading enterprises in VR products in China and the world, have still experienced fluctuations in their business in the past two years. We should take this fluctuation as a normal attitude and VR products should bring consumers a new experience.
Can 2024 ignite the market
With the spatial computing of Apple Vision Pro becoming the focus, several VR manufacturers have also followed suit at the recent CES exhibition, including major manufacturers Sony, as well as emerging domestic companies such as Xiaopai Technology, XReal, and Thunderbird, which are intensifying their layout.
For example, Sony announced the launch of XR headsets for intuitive spatial content creation and interaction, equipped with 4K OLED displays and a pair of controllers for precise interaction in 3D space. In terms of usage scenarios, this product is mainly intended for professionals creating XR content and is expected to be released in the second half of 2024.
In Ren Pan's view, the tipping point for XR is expected to arrive in 2024. "In the first two years, industry sales exceeded 10 million units per year, but have recently declined due to the industry's consolidation. After the Vision Pro is released in 2024, wearing a headset can interact with reality and become a tool for office and productivity, pointing the industry in a new direction. Xiaopai's next generation products will be inspired by the Vision Pro and provide MR functionality."
Regarding the issue of the large volume and weight of XR products, Ren Pan believes that to give the industry some time, while the lightweight brought by product miniaturization to consumers is important, the product experience is more crucial. "At present, there are still many challenges in the industry chain in terms of optics, weight, and other aspects. The first is to ensure the experience, and then to miniaturize. Chinese companies have been involved in the VR industry for a long time and have become a part of global innovation," said Ren Pan.
For example, Xiaopai Technology has already penetrated into the high-end VR market and is commercialized in gaming, simulation and other scenarios. At the CES 2024 exhibition, the first PCVR and all-in-one dual-mode Pimax Crystal head display was showcased, equipped with Qualcomm XR2 and Pimax customized PCVR engine dual processor chips, and integrated with functions such as eye tracking and automatic pupil distance adjustment.
At the same time, it is worth noting that in addition to the most concerned terminal AR/VR manufacturers, upstream suppliers in the industry chain are also increasing their investment in the XR track.
Taking the panel industry as an example, not only are there more and more participants, but the depth of participation is also increasing. As a panel supplier, BOE not only provides display parts services for VR/AR products from brands such as Skyworth, Dapeng, and Xiaopai, but also has just launched the XR hybrid reality all-in-one machine, which can achieve dual eye 4K resolution. Through spatial algorithm upgrades, it can achieve free switching of virtual reality and can be applied in multiple scenarios such as watching movies, games, exhibition displays, education and medical care.
Zhao Jun told reporters that TCL Huaxing currently has dedicated business departments for product development and commercialization of AR and VR. Last year, it achieved mass production of VR products and will continue to increase cooperation with domestic and foreign head AR/VR customers in the future. In terms of products, we focus on the existing LTPS LCD and LTPO LCD, which are equipped with high resolution and have unique advantages in energy conservation, which can further reduce product power consumption. At the same time, we will continue to follow the development trend of silicon-based OLEDs (Micro OLEDs), and if the timing is appropriate, we will also consider entering.
This time, Apple has adopted Micro OLED screens for the first time, mainly supplied by Sony. However, TrendForce pointed out that the current yield rate is not high, only about 50%, resulting in a cost of up to $700 per pair of Micro OLED panels, and limiting Sony's actual supply capacity to around 1 million pieces this year. Therefore, Apple is also seeking supplier diversification. In addition to Sony, Apple is actively exploring cooperation with Chinese Micro OLED company Shiya Technology, and may include it as a second tier supplier as early as the third quarter of 2024.
At present, the entire industry chain of XR is heating up, and Apple's high ups and downs are also injecting a boost into the industry. With the joint promotion of giants and supply chains, the changes in the industry pattern this year deserve continuous attention.