Meta Headset is the best-selling global XR brand

The Meta headset has been one of the most popular wearables since its launch. Meta designed the headset primarily for users to experience the Metaverse, but wearables are also popular for other uses such as gaming.

Meta Quest Pro is a mixed reality headset developed by Reality Labs, a division of Meta Platforms. Launched on October 11, 2022, this is a high-end headset designed for mixed reality and virtual reality applications targeting business and hobbyist users.

As expected, gaming remains the primary use for these headsets, followed by enterprise use cases such as monitoring manufacturing plants with augmented reality (AR) capabilities.

Despite its popularity, global sales of headsets have not reached their projected highs. According to Counterpoint Research’s XR Model Tracker, global augmented reality headset shipments (including AR and VR) fell 33% year over year in Q1 2023.

The survey shows that consumers are losing interest in the XR market. There are several reasons for this, but the main one is the affordability of the headset. These headsets are expensive and out of reach for many. There are also cheaper versions, but consumers are still not convinced that it will help them in their work or education.

In fact, the performance of Sony’s newly launched next-generation PSVR2 (PlayStation VR2) and the Quest 2’s price cut due to meta have saved the global market from an even sharper decline.

Worldwide sales of headsets declined. (Source – Counterpoint Research)

Meta headset was also the best-selling XR headset brand worldwide in Q1 2023, and Quest 2 was the best performing VR headset for many years. The Quest series has shipped more than 20 million units cumulatively as of the first quarter of 2023, with Quest 2 contributing to 18 million units. The Quest 2 continues to sell relatively well, and continues that momentum as Meta cuts prices after last year’s price hike to make the headset more affordable. Additionally, Meta has announced the launch of the Quest 3 later this year, which is expected to boost sales further and build on the success of the Quest 2.

Nevertheless, Meta’s shipment share fell to 49% in Q1 2023, the lowest since the Quest 2 launch in Q4 2020. The decline was due to Sony’s much-anticipated launch of a successor to the PSVR headset it launched in 2016. The newly-released PSVR2 has received significant attention from the video game brand’s user base, with Sony claiming his No. 2 spot in Q1 2023 with a market share of 32%. Additionally, PSVR2 shipped 1.2 times more units in the first quarter of its launch than his predecessor.

Market share included Pico and DPVR in addition to Meta headsets and Sony PSVR2. Both of these brands came in third and fourth place with market share of 7% and 6% respectively. After its acquisition by TikTok parent company ByteDance, Pico’s performance was better than before, but a lack of compelling consumer use cases and restrictions on high-quality content led to a 38% decline in shipments in Q1 2023. bottom.

DPVR shipments are primarily driven by enterprise partners with whom we have established strong relationships. These partners regularly order thousands of units. However, delays in orders from partners in the education sector led to a 40% drop in DPVR shipments in Q1 2023.

So far, 2023 is the year that the next generation VR headsets will launch. His PSVR2 from Sony, E4 from DPVR and HTC’s Vive XR Elite are some of the notable products announced so far this year. With advanced technology and features, these headsets have a retail price of around US$500 or more, which can negatively impact their sales potential. It also depends on how consumers perceive the value these VR headsets provide.

One of the new entrants to the market is Apple’s Vision Pro. The headset set a new high bar for consumer XR devices, but its price was out of reach for most people. Still, Apple will cast a shadow over the market ahead of the Vision Pro’s actual release.