Apple's AR/VR headset suffers even more turmoil as unveiling nears

Apple's unannounced but heavily rumored mixed reality headset has reportedly seen a change of supplier as the company gets ready for its big unveiling.

Thought to be called Reality Pro, the headset is now expected to be announced during the WWCDC event in June. While the product isn't expected to be made available to buy any time soon, it now sounds like Apple has already made a change to its supply chain, ditching one company in favor of another.

That's according to a paywalled DigiTimes report seen by MacRumors, with the report suggesting that Taiwanese outfit Pegatron will no longer be the company responsible for assembling the Reality Pro headset. Instead, it's claimed that Apple has asked Pegatron to hand over production to Luxshare - a company that it already uses for other accessories like AirPods. The company is also responsible for assembling some iPhone and Apple Watch models, while it's also thought to be the one that will build the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

While it isn't yet known why Apple has asked for this change it's suggested that it could be related to Pegatron's decision to move some production from China to other parts of the world. In fact, Luxshare is thought to be taking over one of Pegtron's factories in Shanghai.

That suggestion is particularly interesting because Apple has been trying to move manufacturing away from China in recent years, so it might be expected that it would prefer Pegatron's approach. That isn't so, according to this report.

The Reality Pron headset is already proving problematic for Apple and it isn't even here yet. Some Apple employees are thought to have doubts about the product and whether it can prove to be another success following the iPhone and Apple Watch.

Those fears could well be well-founded. The Reality Pro headset is expected to cost upwards of $3,000 and be heavy with short battery life. That battery is thought to be a hip-mounted affair, adding further compilation to the product.

2023 is already shaping up to be a big year for Apple. With the headset possibly being announced in June, the company is also thought to have a 15-inch MacBook Air in the works while the iPhone 15 lineup will likely be announced during a special event in September.

The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are set to be particularly interesting, with the phones getting a new titanium construction and said to be ditching physical buttons in favor of solid state ones with haptic feedback. All four new iPhone 15 models are expected to move from Lightning connectors to USB-C as well.