Apple is reportedly making a second, cheaper mixed reality headset

Apple’s mixed reality headset isn’t going to be an expensive luxury item forever.

According to reports by both The Information and Bloomberg, Apple is working on a second iteration of its upcoming, heavily rumored mixed reality headset that will be priced a little more fairly for the common consumer. The first one, potentially launching this June, is said to cost around $3,000. According to these new reports, the later version will be priced more like an iPhone, and may not launch until 2024 or 2025.

Of course, that can mean a lot of things. Current iPhones start at around $800 and can balloon past $1,500 if you get all the bells and whistles like increased storage. It’s probably safe to assume Apple’s cheaper headset will be closer to the high end of that range, especially since the competitor Meta Quest Pro comes in at $1,500. 

Bloomberg reported that Apple has included the names “Reality Pro” and “Reality One” in trademark filings, which could be the names for the two headsets. In theory, “Reality One” is the cheaper model. According to Bloomberg, it will be cheaper by virtue of using iPhone-level chips instead of hardware powering Apple’s more powerful computers. 

Aside from that, we don’t know much about this second, cheaper headset. But at least we have something truly new to look forward to from Apple after years of iPhone domination.