Vision Pro broken down: How much is Apple paying for the high-tech components?
Researchers estimate the hardware costs behind the $3,500 headset and break down the components of the Vision Pro.
According to market research firm Omdia, the production cost of the Apple Vision Pro is just over $1,500, based on the hardware components alone. The retail price of the Apple Vision Pro is currently $3,500 for the 256 GB version.
The most expensive components of the headset are the two 1.25-inch micro OLED displays from Sony. Apple pays an estimated $228 per micro OLED display, or $456 per headset. The two pancake lenses from Young Optics cost $70, as does LG's AMOLED display. According to Omdia, Apple spends a total of $240 for the two M2 and R1 chips.
The following table shows the complete list of hardware components and their prices as estimated by Omdia.
Omdia's market researchers estimate the cost of the Vision Pro components at a total value of 1,542 US dollars. | Image: Omdia
Comparison with Quest 3: Meta barely makes a profit
The Chinese company Wellsenn XR also estimated the hardware cost of the Vision Pro and compared it to the Quest 3. According to Wellsenn, Apple paid as much as $350 per unit for the micro-OLED displays. The cost of two pancake lenses is therefore $240, while the chips together are valued at $180.
According to Wellsenn, the hardware costs for a Vision Pro exceed $1,700. By comparison, they expect Quest 3 to cost $430. If this calculation is correct, it is unlikely that Meta will make a profit on the 128 GB model, which sells for $500. After all the margin for Meta's high-priced Quest 3 accessories is likely to be significantly higher.
Vision Pro: Margin could still increase for Apple
All estimates are from 2023 and include only hardware component prices. They do not include other production costs such as research and development, sales, or marketing. Therefore, these lists say little about how much profit Apple actually makes with a headset.
For example, long-term contracts between Apple and its suppliers could significantly affect the price of hardware components. In addition, prices could fall in the event of future higher production volumes of the headset, as the volume of Vision Pro at launch is rather small by Apple standards.
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