AR/VR Headsets See Major Decline as Mixed Reality Emerges

Augmented and virtual reality headsets experienced a double-digit decline over the last year. Worldwide, AR/VR headset manufacturers shipped 8.8 million units in all of 2022, down 20.9% over the previous year, according to a new report from market research firm IDC.

IDC said that in 2022, Meta owned nearly 80% of the market, with ByteDance coming in a distant second at 10%. "The remaining top 5 spots," according to IDC, "were held by DPVR, HTC, and iQIYI. One other notable company was Nreal, [which] captured the sixth position [among] AR/VR headsets but held the top spot in the AR market by shipping nearly [100,000] units over the course of 2022."

"While Meta and ByteDance duke it out in the VR segment, Nreal has been able to slowly grow its presence by appealing to mobile gamers," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager, Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers at IDC, in a prepared statement. "Though it's still early days for AR and VR, Meta has been able to build a moat for itself through its various first- and third-party content. This is where other players such as Sony and potentially Apple can provide meaningful competition, though in the long run it'll put pressure on others including ByteDance and Nreal."

"Another area that is slowly gaining attention is mixed reality — devices that can switch between augmented and virtual reality," added Ramon T. Llamas, research director for Mobile Devices and AR/VR at IDC. "The release of the Meta Quest Pro last fall and the announcement of HTC's XE Elite earlier this year demonstrate clear innovation as to what is possible for the AR/VR market, and it should not be difficult to imagine others following suit. Moreover, commercial users with multiple use cases – ranging from on-boarding and orientation to training and collaboration — may gravitate to its appeal. However, given the still low penetration of AR and VR into the market, it may take several cycles for mixed reality headsets to gain salience."

Further details can be found in IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Augmented and Virtual Reality Headset Tracker.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


Featured

  • robot typing on a computer

    Microsoft Unveils 'Computer Use' Automation in Copilot Studio

    Microsoft has announced a new AI-powered feature called "computer use" for its Copilot Studio platform that allows agents to directly interact with Web sites and desktop applications using simulated mouse clicks, menu selections and text inputs.

  • AI microchip under cybersecurity attack, surrounded by symbols of threats like a skull, spider, lock, and warning shield

    Report Finds Agentic AI Protocol Vulnerable to Cyber Attacks

    A new report from Backslash Security has identified significant security vulnerabilities in the Model Context Protocol (MCP), technology introduced by Anthropic in November 2024 to facilitate communication between AI agents and external tools.

  • educators seated at a table with a laptop and tablet, against a backdrop of muted geometric shapes

    HMH Forms Educator Council to Inform AI Tool Development

    Adaptive learning company HMH has established an AI Educator Council that brings together teachers, instructional coaches and leaders from school district across the country to help shape its AI solutions.

  • illustration of a human head with a glowing neural network in the brain, connected to tech icons on a cool blue-gray background

    Meta Introduces Stand-Alone AI App

    Meta Platforms has launched a stand-alone artificial intelligence app built on its proprietary Llama 4 model, intensifying the competitive race in generative AI alongside OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and xAI.