According to the latest analytics figures, global shipments of VR headsets fell significantly in 2024, despite the release of the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3S.
Shipments fell by 12% in 2024, compared to 2023’s figures, says Counterpoint Research.
It blames the familiar issues levelled at VR and AR headsets, including a “lack of compelling content beyond entertainment, eye fatigue from prolonged use, and the ongoing trade-offs between performance, headset weight, battery life and heat dissipation.”
The shipment figures also suggest the October 2023 release of the Quest 3 brought with it more excitement than the cheaper Quest 3S, which arrived a year later in October 2024.
More recent months have seen Meta reassert its grip on the VR market, though. Its shipments represented 84% of the market in Q4 2024, compared to 65% in Q3 2024.
Big market share drops over that period include those of Apple and Pico — their Vision Pro and Pico 4 Ultra headsets steamrolled on pure unit numbers by the launch Q4 launch of the Meta Quest 3S.
The Future Of VR And AR
It’s not all bad news for the wider AR market, though. Counterpoint Research notes the growth of Chinese VR headset maker DPVR, thanks to growth in the “enterprise” segment. The company also sells to the consumer, including the DPVR E4 headset made for PCVR.
The analytics firm also forecasts a return to growth in 2025 and 2026, but it will be spurred by a “rebound” in augmented reality smart glasses rather than VR headsets.
January’s CES and March’s MWC tech expos were replete with smart glasses tech, with new pairs from Snap, XReal, Nuance and others. Meta also has plans for advanced smart glasses, dubbed Orion when the concept was announced in September 2024.
Meta claims Orion represents “the most advanced pair of AR glasses ever made.” It’s yet to announce a release date, but says “we plan to begin shipping [consumer AR models] in the near future.”
Samsung’s XR headset also promises to move the tech of larger-scale VR headsets forward too, with plans to a launch later in 2025 alongside Google’s Android XR platform. However, as we heard earlier this month, it’s not expected to be a big seller initially, much like the Apple Vision Pro.