Apple has established a reputation for introducing innovative products, albeit at a premium price point, and the potentially higher cost of the Apple Vision Pro may not necessarily impede its success.
Apple Vision Pro
On Monday, the company finally unveiled the highly anticipated mixed-reality headset. Due to its initial price of $3,499, the launch trajectory of this product may deviate from Apple's typically more affordable offerings.
But the latest report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) points out that Apple products consistently maintain a premium price point and still manage to be highly desirable and widely adopted. At this stage, it's impossible to predict if the Vision Pro will become the next essential device, but Apple isn't at its peak yet.
The seamless integration of software, services, and hardware within the Apple ecosystem contributes to the company's competitive edge. The report examines the iPhone, iPad, and Mac and the statistics of their ownership.
For instance, over 40% of Apple device users who are under 45 years old possess all three products, indicating their strong commitment to the Apple ecosystem. Conversely, among users aged 55 years or older, slightly less than one-quarter own all three products, suggesting a comparatively lower level of adoption within this age group.
It might be expected that older, potentially more affluent customers would have a higher prevalence of complete ecosystem ownership due to the premium prices of Apple products. However, this assumption does not hold.
Number of Apple products owned by age of owner as of March 2023
Older groups, typically less familiar with technology, are less inclined to own multiple Apple devices. On the other hand, younger people who own Apple products tend to own multiple devices and actively engage with the Apple ecosystem.
These younger customers have many years of technology purchases ahead of them. Like their parents, they will continue to acquire and use machines that weren't yet in existence during their youth, but they will already be established as Apple customers when those devices are introduced.
As Apple continues to enhance and refine the Vision Pro, the headset's price will likely decrease over time. This price reduction may make the product more appealing to younger users who may not possess the same financial resources as their older counterparts.
Consequently, they may be more inclined to purchase the headset and drive its adoption. Even if the Vision Pro doesn't supplant the iPhone as a primary computing device, it probably won't fail as a product.