Bloomberg recently published a special article, reporting that the final form of Apple’s first MR head-mounted display device after 7 years of development is far from Tim Cook’s expectations.
▲ Image source: Apple official website
Bloomberg quoted multiple people familiar with the matter as revealing that Tim Cook’s initial vision was a lightweight wearable device with a built-in battery similar to ordinary glasses, rather than a head-mounted device that looks like ski goggles and is connected to an external battery by cables. Tim Cook hopes that it can replace some of the functions of the iPhone, and can perform light tasks such as browsing the web, replying to messages, and playing games.
▲ Glasses-style AR equipment, image source: Xiaomi’s official website
Apple’s engineering department failed to achieve this goal, and the final product became a headset. In order to reduce the pressure on the head caused by the weight and avoid high-temperature problems, Apple had to adopt an external method to connect a battery pack equivalent to the size of an iPhone through a power cord, and the user can put it in a pocket or handbag for outdoor use.
Bloomberg pointed out that Tim Cook did not get too involved in product development, but he attached great importance to it. Because this product may be the last new product line launched during Tim Cook’s tenure. Analysts don’t think it will take until at least 2027 for Tim Cook’s glasses to come to fruition. According to Mark Gurman, Tim Cook’s term will end in 2025.
Bloomberg said that because Apple executives are not satisfied with this MR device, sales expectations are also quite conservative. Estimated sales fell to 900,000 units a year from the original plan of 3 million units per year. In addition, the cost is another major pain point. It is reported earlier today that analysts estimated that the cost of Apple’s MR equipment will be as high as $1,600, and Sony’s exclusive supply of Micro OLED screens and 14 CMOS image sensors accounted for nearly one-third of the total cost. one. This also makes the marginal profit of the device much smaller than most of Apple’s products. Apple’s marketing team has to work hard to balance the relationship between pricing and cost, so as to avoid scaring away consumers with too high prices.
