Apple Vision Pro Could Launch Overseas Sooner Than Expected

Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple may launch its Vision Pro headset internationally earlier than anyone expected. Kuo points to increased component production and US sales trends as indicating that Apple has the capacity to pull off an international launch of the Vision Pro sooner.

“Due to the limited demand growth in the U.S. market, advancing the global release schedule is favorable when the supply improves,” he said in his blog. “The actual release time will depend on Apple’s software modification schedule to comply with other countries’ regulations.”

“I still maintain my prediction that Apple may launch Vision Pro in more countries before WWDC this year,” he concludes. Kuo first made this prediction last month.

Last summer, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman was told by his sources that the first launch countries after the US would likely be Canada and the UK, which seems logical considering the very similar English language requirements. However, Gurman also reported that Apple’s engineers were already at work back then on localizing visionOS for France, Germany, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Korea.

Other industry sources have more recently reported that China will likely see an Apple Vision Pro launch by May of this year at the latest. However, Apple may have to deal with potential trademark issues in that country, as Huawei has previously registered “Vision Pro.”

The US-only availability of the Apple Vision Pro hasn’t deterred people from around the world from traveling to the States to purchase the headset, despite its limitations when used in other countries. Unfortunately, some international buyers returning to Berlin, Germany, have had their Apple Vision Pro purchases confiscated by customs officials.

In related news, Kuo also discussed how demand for the Apple Vision Pro has declined rapidly. However, he says the trend is the same as any new Apple device, in that it immediately sold out before seeing demand settle.

The Apple Vision Pro sold out within the first 18 minutes of pre-orders, with shipping times stretching back for weeks. Now, Vision Pro orders are shipping in 3 to 5 days, which Kuo says is due to how “demand for the device declined rapidly [after launch] and has stayed the same.”

Writing in his blog, Kuo says that unless “Apple cuts the price… or there are more attractive applications, the shipment growth in the US may be limited.” However, he does see shipments of “200,000–250,000 this year, better than Apple’s original estimate of 150,000–200,000,” but he says it is “still a niche market.”

Kuo says that “several small-capacity suppliers” of Apple Vision Pro components “have expanded production from 500,000–600,000 units to 700,000–800,000 units this year.” Apple has reportedly asked suppliers to up production to “reduce shipping time after the global launch.”

Kuo does note that production capacity does not necessarily reflect how many devices will be shipped. “For example, the iPhone’s current assembly capacity is 250–300 million units per year, but the actual shipments are much lower,” he says.

Kuo says his sources in the industry tell him that Apple has not officially started either a lower-priced version of the headset or a new model with upgraded specs.

Despite that, Kup believes mass production of a next-generation Vision Pro will kick off in Q4 2025 or Q1 2026. However, he says that the project is focused on “improving the efficiency of production and supply chain management rather than changing specs.”

This could lead to a reduced-cost version of the Vision Pro without reduced specifications.

Kuo says the next significant version of the Apple Vision Pro will not go into mass production until 2027.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]