Apple's AR headset reportedly coming in 2022, but we'll wait till 2024 for Apple Glass

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By Oliver Haslam
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Apple Glass Concept Full
Apple Glass Concept Full (Image credit: Antonio De Rosa)

What you need to know

  • A new supply chain report has Apple ready to release a VR/AR headset as soon as the second half of 2022.
  • The more advanced Apple Glasses are said to be aiming for a launch "after 2023."

Apple will be able to release its next big thing as soon as the second half of next year, according to a new report. That new DigiTimes report has Apple's new AR/VR headset almost ready to go, while we will need to wait a little longer for the rumored Apple Glasses.

The DigiTimes report cites supply chain insiders when saying that mass production of the new AR/VR headset will be ready in the second quarter of 2022, leaving a launch as a real possibility for the second half of the same year.

Via machine translation:

After Apple released the iPhone 13, it was criticized for nothing new, but the next generation of products that Apple regarded as a secret weapon is expected to appear in 2022. The supply chain revealed that Apple's first AR headset has completed P2 (the second phase of prototype testing), and is expected to be mass-produced in the second quarter of 2022 and is expected to come out in the second half of the year.

While that headset is thought to be one of Apple's next bit products, there's more to come in the form of Apple Glasses — an advanced version of the heasdet that will look and work more like traditional spectacles — but with Apple magic sprinkled all over them. According to DigiTimes, we should expect Apple Glass to arrive "after 2023."

The supply chain pointed out that Apple's AR headset plans 2 products, one is a high-end model, positioned as a commercial product, containing a camera and a laser optical sensor, weighing about 100-110 grams, and using a 5-nanometer process chip. It still needs to be connected to the iPhone via Bluetooth, and the frame part will be made of high-strength, lightweight magnesium alloy material containing trace rare earth elements.The industry speculates that due to its relatively high cost of components and initial scale, the price may rise to more than US$2,000. Therefore, Apple positions it as an industrial product, with an estimated annual shipment scale of 2 million to 250 Wantai, as for another AR product aimed at the general public, the design has not yet been finalized, and it is estimated that mass production will be on the market after 2023.

Apple reportedly still has problems to work out, not least issues "including heat dissipation, weight and battery life."

All of this comes as Apple still has plenty of product launches to get out of the way this year, let alone next. The best iPhone ever goes on sale this Friday, while a new iPad mini will join it. Refreshed AirPods and new Macs are also expected to debut before too long, too.

Oliver Haslam
Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.

Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.