Apple will launch headset for Christmas, but in limited numbers

While Apple has yet to officially announce its first-ever headset device, supply chain expert Ming-Chi Kuo has previously been predicting that mass production would happen in Q3 2023. That would have meant the device being widely available in time for the holidays, but Kuo says that’s no longer the case.

It’s always been expected that Apple would announce the headset months ahead of a public release, in order to give developers time to produce apps for it. If Kuo is correct, that initial public release is going to have to be smaller than hoped, at least at first.

If production starts later in the year than anticipated, Kuo says in his full tweet that shipments “in 2023 are likely to be lower than the market consensus.”

He argues, though, that rather than specific shipment numbers — which Apple may never release — attention is on whether the device will be popular enough.

“However, the focus for investors now is not on shipments,” writes Kuo, “but on whether the new product announcement will convince people that Apple’s AR/MR headset device is the next star in consumer electronics.”