Apple AR/VR headset release date: Analyst says mass shipments could be delayed to the second half of 2023

Apple is expected to enter the AR and VR space by next year with its first mixed-reality headset. While previous reports claimed it could be announced in early 2023, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo updated his predictions to suggest that mass shipments may be delayed.

Kuo shared his recent findings on Twitter on Sunday, citing his latest survey within the supply chain, that the Apple AR/VR headset’s availability could be moved later into 2023. Previous estimates suggested that the high-end device could be released in early 2023, but Kuo now believes that mass shipments could be delayed into the second half of next year.

“My latest survey indicates that the mass shipment schedule of Apple's MR headset may delay to 2H23 because of software-related issues (vs. the previous estimate of 2Q23),” the analyst said.

Kuo says mass shipment for the Apple AR/VR headset components “is still likely” to commence in the second quarter or first half of 2023. But the delayed retail launch of the actual device is expected to significantly lower the headset shipments for 2023 to less than 500,000 units. Previously, the tech giant was anticipated to ship between 800,000 and 1 million units.

These changes are expected to affect Apple's suppliers. Kuo said the company would be getting the AR/VR headset’s lenses from Largan, the pancake for chip manufacturing from Genius, the camera parts from Cowell, and the eye movement sensors from Primax.

There were reports that the Apple AR/VR headset could be unveiled as early as January 2023. But that was when the device’s release window was anticipated in the second quarter of next year. Kuo said it remains to be seen whether Apple will also change the media event for the high-end product. “But usually, if the time frame between the media event and end product mass shipment is too long, it's detrimental to promotion and sales,” Kuo added.

The reported issues related to the Apple AR/VR headset’s software were not specified. But tech fans got a recent update about the matter following Bloomberg’s report that the company internally changed the operating system’s name from realityOS to “xrOS.” The publication added that the “xr” in “xrOS” means extended reality, which is another commonly used term to refer to both virtual reality and augmented reality.

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