Global shipments of VR and mixed reality (MR) headsets are expected to hit approximately 9.6 million units in 2024, according to a report by market analyst TrendForce. This represents a year-on-year increase of 8.8% compared to 2023. 

Meta retains its position as the global leader in VR and MR device shipments with a 73% market share in 2024, which TrendForce puts down to the popularity of the relatively affordable Quest 3S—priced at just US$299.

Sony’s PS VR2 claimed the second-largest market share at 9% for 2024. But the analyst said despite its efforts to integrate the PS VR2 with PC, using adapters to broaden the content available to users, limited functionality and application support have held back its sales. It says these issues caused Sony’s annual shipments to decline by 25% year-on-year.

Apple Vision Pro quickly captured 5% of the overall market after launching earlier this year according to the report, making it the third-largest player in the VR/MR market. The analyst thinks that the high price and lack of applications may have held back Apple’s Vision Pro sales compared to previous product launches, though the headset will likely influence the future direction of the entire market. 

But despite currently controlling only a small slice of the market, the release of the Vision Pro may be set to have a big influence on the VR space.

TrendForce says its launch has shifted the market “beyond its traditional focus on consumer-oriented entertainment toward a broader role as multi-functional productivity tools.” The analyst also points to how the introduction of OLEDoS display technology in the Vision Pro set a “new benchmark for product specifications and visual quality in the sector.”

In addition, TrendForce also highlighted how the Vision Pro includes capabilities such as document editing and virtual meetings, and said how they expect these productivity-focused tools to “encourage other brands “to reevaluate the functional attributes of their own VR/MR devices, expanding their role in both consumer and enterprise markets.”

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Looking forward, it expects Apple to adopt a two-pronged strategy for its VR headsets, releasing both a budget headset and a higher-end device as early as 2026. This broadly lines up with the predictions of Bloomberg’s Apple expert Mark Gurman.

TrendForce also predicts that Apple might experiment with goods imported from Chinese suppliers as a way to cut costs, as well as with incorporating cheaper glass-based OLED displays and LCDs with LTPO backplane technology, but predicts it will stick with the OLSEDoS display, at least for the higher-end model.

About Will McCurdy

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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.

I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.

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