Samsung’s $2,000 Competitor to Vision Pro Enters Mass Production, Targets Late 2024 Launch
The Vision Pro has received mixed reviews since its launch, with some users returning their devices in large numbers while others are thoroughly enjoying the next generation of spatial computing. Interestingly enough, despite its $3,500 price tag, Apple has managed to sell over 200,000 units, which has, in turn, had some competitors worried (no shade intended, Zuck…).
Samsung Had to Reconsider the Headset Hardware After the Release of Apple’s Vision Pro
Samsung has been planning on launching its own version of an XR headset for quite some time now, but the release of Apple’s Vision Pro inadvertently postponed its launch, since the original hardware specifications were considered inferior to the Vision Pro.
The design and hardware have undergone significant changes, and now appear to be well-suited for the target market. Reports indicate that the headset will be priced somewhere between $500 (Meta Quest 3) and $3,500 (Apple Vision Pro), potentially settling around $2,000, which would directly compete with Meta’s Quest Pro series.
| Apple Vision Pro | Meta Quest 3 | Meta Quest Pro | Samsung’s Rumored XR Headset | |
| Type | Mixed Reality (MR) | Virtual Reality (VR) | VR | VR/AR |
| Release Date | Febuary 2024 | October 2023 | October 2022 | Late 2024 (rumored) |
| MSRP | $3,499 | $499 | $1,499 | $2,000 (rumored) |
| Display Resolution (per eye) | 3,386 PPI | 1218 PPI | 1059 PPI | 4.3K or 3.7K |
| Refresh Rate | 120 Hz | 90 Hz | 90 Hz | 90 Hz and 120 Hz |
| Chipset | M2 & R1 | Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 | Snapdragon XR2+ | Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 |
| Eye Tracking | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Facial Tracking | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
Due to the hardware re-evaluation, Samsung not only increased the raw processing power but also addressed the visual aspects of the headset. Initially, it offered a lower-resolution 2,000 PPI single-eye display compared to Apple’s 3,386 PPI display, and it also lacked behind in the chipset department, using the older, less powerful Exynos 2200 compared to Apple’s dual-chip M2 and R1 combination.
The revised specifications include Qualcomm’s recently released Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset, paired with displays offering a 90Hz refresh rate at 4.3K resolution and 120Hz at 3.7K resolution. This chipset is the direct successor to the XR2 Gen 2 found in the Meta Quest 3. Since we don’t have complete performance numbers at this point, we can’t directly compare the XR2+ Gen 2 with the M2.
Samsung’s XR headset has now entered mass production and targets a release around the last quarter of this year. The company forecasts selling around 300,000 units in 2024. The release of the Vision Pro has undoubtedly raised a lot of eyebrows, with multiple companies now vying to push for a place within this rapidly emerging green field market.
This is all we know for now, but rest assured that we will keep you updated as new information becomes available.
