An analyst agency launched detailed reviews estimating the price of every element in Meta Quest 3 and Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional.
Wellsenn XR is a China-based startup that describes itself as “a vertical analysis establishment for the VR/AR/MR trade” that “focuses on the upstream provide chain”.
It is essential to notice that these estimates do not embrace the analysis & product improvement prices incurred by every firm, nor the prices of creating, updating, and supporting the system software program and content material included with the headset. This evaluation is solely in regards to the direct prices of buying and assembling the parts.
We also needs to notice that Apple is a secretive firm that usually has complicated multi-year agreements with its suppliers, so parts of Wellsenn’s estimates may very well be wildly off. Nonetheless, it is an attention-grabbing breakdown of how the completely different parts of the headset might contribute to its value proportionally.
Based on Wellsenn, the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset from Qualcomm is the most costly single element in Quest 3 at $90. The XR2 Gen 2 is constructed on a 4nm course of node, in comparison with the 7nm of the unique, and has a greater than twice as highly effective GPU.
The full price of all chips and different computing parts within the headset, together with issues such because the RAM and storage, is estimated at $151.
Wellman estimates the 2 LCD panels price $40 every whereas the pancake lenses price $25 every, with a complete show and optics price of $133.
The opposite vital prices embrace the cameras and sensors, estimated at $41.50, and the Contact Plus controllers, estimated at $16.50 every.
Wellsenn estimates the entire element price of Quest 3 is round $400, whereas the ultimate price together with manufacturing is estimated at $430.
When factoring in R&D prices and different oblique prices, Meta is probably going making no revenue, and even taking a loss, on the 128GB Quest 3 mannequin.
Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional
With Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional, the most costly element is alleged to be the near-4K OLED microdisplays, at a stagging $350. Sure, that is proper, in line with Wellsenn every of the Imaginative and prescient Professional’s shows price nearly as a lot as your entire element invoice of Quest 3.
OLED microdisplays are manufactured instantly onto silicon wafers with a course of very completely different to smartphone or TV-sized OLED panels. Whereas the expertise itself is not new, till this 12 months it was solely used for comparatively low decision shows in very low quantity merchandise like high-end digicam viewfinders and a few industrial good glasses. Manufacturing of excessive decision shows is barely starting to be spun up now, for XR headsets, and continues to be in low quantity.
Apple is sourcing its near-4K OLED microdisplays from Sony, and the problems with scaling up manufacturing have been extensively reported by shops together with The Info, The Monetary Occasions, and South Korean outlet The Elec. These reviews recommend Sony might solely have the ability to produce sufficient for as much as half one million Imaginative and prescient Professional headsets within the first 12 months.
The subsequent highest price is alleged to be the pancake lenses, at $120 every. That is nearly 5 occasions as costly as Quest 3’s. This may very well be due to the higher magnification – OLED microdisplays are smaller than the LCD panels utilized in Quest – however it’s extra doubtless associated to the vastly decrease manufacturing quantity of Imaginative and prescient Professional in comparison with Quest 3.
The M2 chipset is estimated to price Apple $120, and the R1 processor used to course of the passthrough cameras prices $60. When all different chip prices are included, the entire computing parts price is estimated at $286.
The ultimate vital price is the body and shell. Whereas on Quest 3 that is plastic and estimated at simply $16, Imaginative and prescient Professional makes use of a customized aluminum alloy body supporting a curved glass entrance plate, and Wellsenn estimates this at $132.
Earlier this 12 months The Info reported that Imaginative and prescient Professional can be the “most intricate” machine Apple has ever made, and that the unique producer handed over the mission to a distinct firm as a result of it was so difficult to assemble. There are such a lot of parts packed into such a small body, which is curved, that meeting staff reportedly “have little room to maneuver instruments and have to put in parts at awkward angles.” Due to this, Wellsenn estimates Apple is being charged $130 per headset for meeting, bringing the entire price of the headset to over $1700.
That is clearly loads decrease than $3500, however as we talked about above, take note this does not embrace the analysis and product improvement prices. Apple has been engaged on a headset for at the very least six years, and has reportedly poured billions of {dollars} into the mission. The worth may be meant to artificially constrain demand given Sony’s reportedly extraordinarily restricted manufacturing capability of OLED microdisplays.
It is clear that Imaginative and prescient Professional is a way more bold headset than Quest 3, however that comes at a a lot greater price. Apple is reportedly engaged on a less expensive mannequin that would ditch the entrance show and use an A-series chipset from iPhones, in addition to cheaper supplies. Nonetheless, it can doubtless nonetheless be priced properly above $1000, and securing OLED microdisplay provide at scale will proceed to be a problem for years to come back.
