Apple: Unofficial dates for AR glasses & virtual reality headsets

Apple is apparently already working on the second generation of an autonomous headset for virtual and augmented reality. In addition, lightweight augmented reality glasses for content from the iPhone are in development. Now rumors have surfaced about when the three headsets will be launched.

It will probably start with the first generation of virtual reality headsets. This should come onto the market in the second quarter of 2023, writes the well-known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo Twitter. The official presentation could be in January 2023, he suspects. Haitong Intl Tech Reasearch analyst Jeff Pu writes aloud 9to5Mac in a note that the second generation of VR glasses will be released together with the augmented reality headset in the second half of 2024.

Autonomous headsets are designed to combine VR and AR

The VR headset is a pair of glasses that should enable convenient switching between a virtual reality experience and an augmented reality experience, says Kuo in one tweet. With VR, the user sinks completely into a virtual world, with AR only information is shown in reality or in a live video of it. The VR glasses work autonomously, i.e. independently of other Apple devices. And Apple is said to already have two generations of these VR/AR glasses in development.

Additional lightweight AR glasses for the iPhone

Glasses number 3 are lightweight augmented reality glasses that pair with the iPhone and display some content from it. So it does not work autonomously, but depends on a connected iPhone. Here is an overview of the expected release dates:

• Autonomous VR/AR glasses 1st generation: 2nd quarter 2023
• Autonomous VR/AR glasses 2nd generation: 2nd half of 2024
• Lightweight AR glasses for the iPhone: 2nd half of 2024