Meta is rumored to have canceled its next high-end VR headset – and the Vision Pro could be to blame
No Meta Quest Pro 2?
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It would seem Meta has decided to cancel a high-end mixed reality headset it had in the pipeline – quite possibly the successor to theMeta Quest Pro– due in part to the lukewarm sales performance of theApple Vision Pro.
This is according to Meta insiders speaking toThe Information(viaThe Verge). It was previously thought that the device, which had an internal codename of La Jolla (a neighborhood in California), would be seeing the light of day in 2027.
Meta CTO Andrew Bosworthhas postedabout the report, saying that the company has “many prototypes in development at all times” and that decisions like this are common. “We move forward with some, we pass on others,” Bosworth said.
From that, it seems Meta is still committed to virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality devices generally speaking – and indeed we’re expecting to see another reasonably affordable headset launch next month in the form of theMeta Quest 3S.
Cost cutting
Part of the reason for the cancelation, based on the report in The Information, is that the headset was using expensive micro-OLEDdisplays – making it very difficult to hit the goal of a price point below $1,000 (that’s about £755 / AU$1,470).
However, it also seems that consumer reaction to the $3,499 / £3,499 / AU$5,999 Vision Pro also played a part in the decision. Even the people buyingApple’s headsetare often returning it, and there have been reports that Vision Pro 2 developmenthas been paused.
The device in question may be theMeta Quest Pro 2: it’s a piece of hardware we haven’t heard that much about, but the talk had been thatLGcould have been involvedin making its OLED screens. The La Jolla codenamehas turned upin rumors before, too.
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Something else factoring into the decision may have been the lack of success of the $999.99 / £999.99 / AU$1,729.99 Meta Quest Pro – at least compared to the cheaperMeta Quest 3, which has found a sizable number of fans.
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Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.
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