Zeke Jones / Digital Trends
The Vision Pro is a nifty piece of technology that ’s built specifically to fit into Apple ’s ecosystem , but there areplenty of other large VR headsets to choose from . Many cost less while offering similar experience . A few even challenge Apple head - on , correspond and exceeding the Vision Pro ’s advanced technology .
Here are five headset you should purchase alternatively of the Vision Pro and why you might wish them better thanApple ’s spatial computer .
Zeke Jones / Digital Trends
Meta Quest 3
The Meta Quest 3 ameliorate on every face of the world ’s most popular VR headset , the Quest 2 , and it does so while keeping cost low . For $ 500 , you get a great assorted - reality experience that in some ways beats the Vision Pro .
At one - one-seventh the cost , the $ 500 Quest 3 ca n’t compete with the performance of the M2 chip powering the $ 3,500 Vision Pro or the sharpness of the 12.5 - megapixel - per - eye displays . Apple tamp down so much tech into its headset that it does n’t even make sense to compare the specifications .
On the other helping hand , the Quest 3 is the sound low-priced VR headset with a large , divers game depository library that no other producer can vie with . As Meta ’s CEO notes , the Quest 3 can pit many of the Vision Pro ’s features , albeit with less sharpness and a lack of 2D apps .
If you like the idea of working out in VR , the Quest 3 wins again . Meta possess Supernatural , the run VR physical fitness app , and the Meta storage lists 40 other titles with sports simulation , meditation , and gamified exercising of all kinds . The depository library of games , apps , and experiences gives Meta a big advantage over other VR headsets . Plus , you’re able to plug in to your figurer to toy Steam VR , games , and stream Xbox games with Game Pass .
Varjo XR-4
If money is n’t a circumscribe factor when you shop for a VR headset , the Vision Pro ’s cost wo n’t scare you . However , the agiotage price does n’t mean it ’s the good that money can buy .
I was blown aside by Varjo ’s Aero headset in January 2023 . VR technology is moving so chop-chop in the last several months , its advanced engineering science has already been surpassed .
Check out Varjo ’s XR-4 , a personal computer VR headset design for enterprisingness drug user that boasts a high firmness than the Vision Pro . The XR-4 displays show 14.3 megapixels for each eye , about 15 % more than Apple ’s headset .
I have n’t had a luck to try Varjo ’s in force headset yet , but the color passthrough cameras are technically better also . The XR-4 features dual 20 MP camera versus the Vision Pro ’s 6.5 MP camera resolution . If you may give either of these VR headset , you might already owna powerful Windows personal computer with a strong graphics add-in . That ’s a requirement of the Varjo XR-4 , since there ’s no standalone mode .
The Varjo XR-4 costs $ 3,990 , so inquiry well before making a purchase decisiveness . If you ’re serious about VR and postulate the best for personal computer productivity and realistic pretending , the XR-4 is a top contender .
Pimax Crystal
The Pimax Crystal stole the crown from the Varjo Aero as the sharpestconsumer VR headset available in 2023 . With 8 - megapixel - per - eye displays , it feature 80 % dandy resolution than Meta ’s best .
Apple raised the bar in 2024 , but the Crystal is still very clean compared to most other VR headsets . At $ 1,600 , it ’s too expensive for average VR users , and not telling enough for enthusiasts who are willing to spend more . Pimax has two new variate to address the chop-chop changing VR market place , both of which are PC VR headset that need a gaming microcomputer .
The $ 700 Crystal Light count less than the original yet matches many of its good feature at a much lower price . The Pimax Crystal Super is a high - final stage solution bulge out at $ 1,800that sport 14.7 - megapixel - per - eye display . Very few VR headset use micro - OLED displays , fix this optional upgrade noteworthy . With darker blacks and vivacious colors , the Crystal Super ’s display could reckon as expert as Apple ’s Vision Pro .
I was impressed by the original model but have n’t tried the Pimax Light or Super . While the Pimax Crystal is available now , you canpreorder and reservethe raw simulation , which Pimax ask to transport later this yr .
Meta Quest Pro
Since Apple ’s Vision Pro is more of a productiveness headset than a VR gaming arrangement , it might be better to liken it to Meta ’s work - centric VR headset . When Meta launched the Quest Pro in 2022 , the idea was to practice it as a body of work - from - home resolution or in the office alongside your computer .
Whilethe Quest Pro was n’t a unspoiled laptop replacement in 2022 , the Quest platform has get along a foresightful way in the last two eld . Meta ’s internet browser is much more capable and so isthe Quest operating scheme , now known as Horizon OS .
For example , you’re able to re-create and paste , swipe in text on the practical keyboard , and download trope , all of which were once difficult . Some new productiveness solutions like theFluid freeform internet browser , Softspace note - submit app , andCampfire conception reappraisal appare making the Quest Pro a compelling option for working in VR .
One twelvemonth makes a with child difference in the tech world , and the $ 1,000 Quest Pro ’s trail the Quest 3 in performance and graphics faithfulness . Do n’t bother sizing up its stipulation next to Apple ’s Vision Pro .
However , the not bad apps and unmatched comfort are what draw me back to this headset . The Quest Pro ’s unique design blank space the battery at the back for balanceand suspend the show in front of my eyes with elbow room for my face to breathe , eliminating insistence on the buttock .
Immersed Visor
If you may wait a few calendar month , you might desire to check out a new headset coming from a VR app developer . Immersed is a popular outside VR desktop app uncommitted on the Meta Quest program . It just became useable for the Apple Vision Pro as well .
The Immersed Visor is a super - lightweight VR headset that looks more like a pair of sporty glasses . Despite the modest size , Immersed claim it will fit many of the Vision Pro ’s best feature at a fraction of the price .
A lighter VR headset is something we all want . As magical as the Vision Pro is , it ’s just too wakeless .
I ca n’t wait to test this VR headset . Starting at $ 1,050 , the Visor boasts 4K - per - oculus micro - OLED displays , eye - tracking , with the power to run apps in standalone and PC VR mode . Immersed expects to launch the Visor this year and is now acceptingpreorders . So , while you ca n’t buy this one yet , the vizor is by all odds desire to appear out for .
Wait for the Vision Pro 2?
The ultimate Apple Vision Pro alternative might be the Vision Pro 2or Vision Pro Lite . While we ’re always go for for improvements in performance and artwork quality in ordinary VR headsets , the Vision Pro part with the sharpest displays and most powerful mainframe for standalone use .
I ’m hoping for a less - expensive and lighter mannikin . Apple would have to cut some feature article and possibly use fewer premium materials to check both items off my wish list . Perhaps , losing the front EyeSight display , switching to an A - series processor , and using some charge plate in the design could help with a slight budget model .
Realistically , a second - generation Vision Pro is over a year away , with somerecent reports point to 2026 or beyond . Apple just launched the Vision Pro in Februaryand has n’t mention any other spatial electronic computer .
That ’s a long fourth dimension to wait when you ’re excited about what ’s usable right now . If the only root you ’re quenched with is a headset made by Apple , the Vision Pro could still be the right choice .
