Apple’s recent announcement of the Vision Pro headset at the Worldwide Developer Conference in Cupertino, California, has garnered significant attention. While the tech giant entered the metaverse space with this new product, the audience’s reaction to its eye-watering price tag has become a viral sensation on social media.
The audience’s response to the price of the Vision Pro headset, starting at $3,499, was met with boos, groans, and sighs, as captured in a TikTok video that quickly gained 8.7 million views. Twitter users also reposted the video, leading to millions more views. Comparisons to the crowd’s reaction in “Wii Sports,” the cartoonish Nintendo game, when making an unfavorable move, such as throwing the ball backward in Wii Bowling, added to the amusement. The similarities in the disappointed sigh heard in both instances were noted, further contributing to the viral sensation.
The surprise and amusement in the audience’s reaction are noteworthy, considering that the conference typically attracts devoted Apple fans. Speculations arise about whether these enthusiasts will invest their savings in the high-priced Vision Pro headset.
While the $3,499 price tag may limit initial adoption, Anisha Bhatia, a senior technology analyst at GlobalData, suggests that Apple’s main objective with the Vision Pro is not immediate profitability. Instead, the company aims to establish a presence in the extended reality (XR) space and create a market that can be further developed with future iterations of Vision Pro.
Despite the initial skepticism and price concerns, the viral sensation surrounding the announcement highlights the ongoing fascination with Apple’s foray into the metaverse and the anticipation of its future developments.