Apple Vision Pro will be available by appointment only

According to a new report, Apple is planning a very slow distribution of the device, with initial sales in select stores in the United States. And if you want to buy it, you will need to submit an application.

The stores will have special areas with seating, one or two demo devices and tools for sizing accessories. To determine the right light seal, the company is said to be developing an iPhone app that will scan your head, as well as a physical device used for the same purpose.

First, stores with these special sections will only be located in «major areas» such as New York and Los Angeles, before rolling out nationwide. Apple doesn’t plan to offer the Vision Pro to third-party resellers until at least 2025, given how complicated in-store installation must be. Online sales in the U.S. through Apple’s online store will begin in early 2024.

The Vision Pro will be available in the U.S.

The headset will be available in other countries in late 2024, the first two of which should be the United Kingdom and Canada. Asia and Europe will get it in 2025. Apple engineers are working on localization for France, Germany, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea.

The company is already working on a second-generation Pro model, set to debut in 2026, as well as a cheaper non-Pro Vision headset. Earlier this week, it was revealed that Apple had halved its first-year sales projections from 900,000 to less than 400,000 because of a complicated manufacturing process.

Interestingly, during testing of the Vision Pro, the company determined that some people with «small body and head sizes» would not be able to wear it for longer than half an hour. To alleviate this problem, a second strap is being developed that will sit on the top of the user’s head, but its design has yet to be finalized.

In the meantime, a second strap is being designed to fit on the top of the user’s head.

Vision Pro has built-in warnings that will prevent the user from putting it on if they are walking at a certain speed — this is done to prevent them from hitting a wall or an object. Apple has even thought about those who want to use the headset in an airplane or car, and there’s a special «Travel Mode» mode that disables those warnings.