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Apple’s Reality Pro headset may launch sooner than anyone expected

Alex Blake
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This story is part of our complete Apple WWDC coverage

Apple’s mixed-reality headset is probably the company’s worst-kept secret at this point, and multiple rumors have claimed it will launch at the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. What’s less clear is when the device will actually go on sale, but a fresh report might have just leaked this top-secret detail.

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The information comes from Taiwan’s Economic Daily News (machine translation), which has just released a report on the Reality Pro headset. In that report, the outlet claims Apple is in a “final sprint” to get the product ready, suggesting it is almost ready to ship.

A woman reaching out while wearing a VR headset.
Mark Nazh/Shutterstock

Interestingly, the report cites Foxconn subsidiary GIS, which it claims will be fitting the lenses to the Reality Pro. The report notes that GIS believes it will start shipping a metaverse product “from the second quarter” of 2023. That oblique statement is thought to be a reference to Apple’s headset.

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The second quarter runs until the end of June 2023, suggesting that the headset could launch mere weeks after WWDC kicks off on June 5. That would be a remarkably short window considering how many problems the headset is rumored to have faced, even as recently as earlier this month.

Shipping by the summer?

A rendering of four Apple mixed-reality headsets (Reality Pro) in various colors sitting on a surface.
Ahmed Chenni, Freelancer.com

That said, Economic Daily News allows for a little wiggle room when it comes to the shipping date. Further down in the report is the assertion that the headset’s “mass production and shipment will begin in the second and third quarters.” The third quarter runs from July 1 to September 30.

Yet even that date might be ambitious. Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman has recently claimed that the many delays the headset has faced mean Apple will simply be happy to get it onto store shelves in time for the holidays. Previously, Gurman had expected the device to be revealed in March and start shipping in September.

Still, the report from Economic Daily News suggests at least one company is optimistic that the Reality Pro could go on sale as soon as this summer. If Apple is able to pull off a June launch, it will mark an impressive turnaround for a device seemingly plagued by setbacks and delays.

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Alex Blake
Alex Blake
Computing Writer
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