Apple Vision Pro Launches in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK

Apple is launching its Vision Pro headset in five new markets today. Following a previous release in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore two weeks ago, the Vision Pro is now available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK (via MacRumors).

Since its initial launch in the US in February, Apple has been slow to bring the $3,499 headset to more markets, but for good reason: The Vision Pro is much more expensive than other mixed reality headsets like the $499 Meta Quest 3. As a first-gen product, the Vision Pro also had to make some compromises, such as the external battery pack that Apple isn’t showing in marketing pictures.

If several reviews have also pointed out that the Vision Pro isn’t very comfortable to wear after a long period of time, Apple did nail the software experience and the app ecosystem. There are already over 2,000 native apps available on the Vision Pro, and more than 1.5 million iOS and iPadOS are also compatible.

Later this year, the Vision Pro will get its first major software update with visionOS 2. The main new features include new hand gestures to navigate the OS, a higher resolution and larger size for the Mac Virtual Display feature, as well as mouse support for additional workflow options. Apple really wants the Vision Pro to be used for entertainment and productivity scenarios, though it’s pretty clear that enthusiasm for the “Metaverse” faded away some time ago.