Key Takeaways
- Apple’s highly anticipated Vision Pro AR/VR headset will launch on Feb. 2.
- The headset will cost $3,499, making it a significant investment for potential buyers.
- Apple announced Vision Pro availability one day before the start of CES 2024.
Apple’s Vision Pro AR/VR headset was the talk of the town when it was announced during an event in June 2023, but the company stopped just short of telling us when we would be able to buy it. Instead, potential buyers were simply told to expect the headset to go on sale in early 2024, a timeframe that left much to the imagination. Now we finally have a release date.
On Monday, Apple announced that it would begin accepting pre-orders for the Vision Pro starting on Jan. 19, with general availability to follow on Feb. 2. As previously announced, the device will cost $3,499.
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Taking the spotlight from CES
Over the weekend, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple was planning to take some of the focus away from this week’s CES 2024 event by announcing the “imminent” availability of the Vision Pro headset. To that end, Apple is already starting to move inventory around the United States.
“I expect Apple to make an announcement related to the Vision Pro in the next week or so to take some of the spotlight away from CES…”
“The device is already shipping in small quantities to warehouses across the US before distribution to Apple retail stores, with the company believing it’ll have enough supply stateside by the end of January for a launch by February,” Gurman wrote. “I expect Apple to make an announcement related to the Vision Pro in the next week or so to take some of the spotlight away from CES, which begins Tuesday in Las Vegas.
I tried Apple Vision Pro and I wasn’t at all prepared for the experience it delivered
My preview with the Apple Vision Pro opened my eyes to the possibilities of what it can offer.
Gurman goes on to explain that Apple has plans for a January 21 training session that will see all US stores hold a three-hour meeting for every employee. While it hasn’t been confirmed what the meeting will be about, “retail workers believe these meetings will be when training takes place and sales procedures will be discussed.” New inventory racks and backroom equipment are then expected to begin appearing in stores that week.
This all applies to the United States of course, but Gurman also believes that Apple is looking ahead to launching the Vision Pro headset in China, the United Kingdom, and Canada sooner rather than later. Apple had previously said that an international launch would come later in 2024 without naming which countries would receive the headset first.
