Immersive entertainment: does Apple have the vision?

Will Apple’s Vision Pro be a vision into the future? The tech giant has recently announced its latest Mixed Reality headset, which promises to lead technology into ‘the era of spatial computing’. Vision Pro will be available for early adopters in the US as early as Q1 of 2024, but it will carry quite a hefty price tag, starting at US$3,499.

Vision Pro’s underlying technology can be helpful in professional settings and could revolutionise industries such as healthcare and education. However, arguably, its current features are primarily based around entertainment, with Apple teaming up with Disney+ to bring AR and VR into streaming. In turn, we expect Vision Pro as well as any other models Apple will release in the following few years, to be especially appealing to young audiences. This being said, how much of a barrier its high price will be for kids, remains a question.

Of all kids aged three to 18 in the US who during Mar-May 2023 have said they own wearable technology (smart watches, VR sets etc.), 21% owned Oculus Quest (any series). Meta’s critically acclaimed VR gadget was initially marketed as a portal into the metaverse. However, since ChatGPT came into the picture, the metaverse has arguably taken a backseat and everyone started talking about AI instead. Is Vision Pro going to be another gadget in direct competition with Meta, or is it going to revolutionise the VR and AR space?

Using Kids Insights data, we looked into kids’ views on technology and VR. Furthermore, we investigated the profile of the typical kid aged 10-15 in the US (sweet spot) who owns wearable technology.

According to global Kids Insights data gathered during Mar-May 2023, with 10-15s (sweet spot) Virtual Reality ranks 15th as ‘the next big thing’. In the US, it ranks 11th.

Globally, 57% of tweens and young teens say they want to have access to the latest technology and design. The country where 10-15s are the most likely to say so, is the US (78%) where year-on-year, this notion has become more popular by 14%. This is perhaps unsurprising, as the US is a leading technology hub and the market where some of the world’s most innovative products have been launched first. According to Statista, approximately 40% of Apple’s revenue comes from the US, which further justifies Apple’s decision to initially make Vision Pro available for US citizens.

Furthermore, the US is the country where 10-15s are the most likely to own wearable technology. Specifically, 18% say that they do – a figure representing a 12% year-onyear increase. Other countries where wearable technology is popular include the UK (9.3%, up 7% year-on-year), Saudi Arabia (7.8%, up 42%) and Australia (6.9%, up 68%). It won’t be surprising if these countries are Vision Pro’s next destinations.

Using our Question Time tool, we’ve taken a closer look into the profile of the typical wearable technology user in the US. We found that wearable technology owners (aged 10-15) are 45% more likely than average to state Apple as their favourite brand. Despite Vision Pro just being announced, the data indicates a highly lucrative market for it, with those who embrace wearable technology already showing higher-than-average affinity with Apple. This is an example of how our Audience Segmentation tools can be used to reveal promising strategies, or partnership opportunities.

Download your free copy here: get.theinsightsfamily.com/familyreport2022

With regards to gaming preferences, we see Fortnite (28% higher than average) and Roblox (plus 49%) featuring as these kids’ favourite PC games, ahead of Grand Theft Auto, which overall, ranks first with all 1015s surveyed.

These open-world games/social communities have been heavily regarded as kids’ version of the metaverse and as our data suggests, they are associated with immersive experiences. It’s likely that Vision Pro’s arrival will further reinforce the social gaming space, while boosting kids’ desire for customisation, creation and free exploration.

Finally, this group of kids over-index on aspiring to a career as an IT specialist ( up 30%) and saying that IT is their favourite school subject (up 78%). The use of such devices, which leads to appreciation for computing indicates that beyond being entertaining, the role of Vision Pro, or any other wearable device, can be educational.

The Insights Family is the global leader in kids, parents, and family market intelligence, providing real-time data on attitudes, behaviours and consumption patterns. Kids Insights surveys 7,780 children every week aged 3-18. Parents Insights surveys more than 3,800 parents of children between the ages of 1 and 16 every week.

Both services operate in 22 countries across six continents and in total, survey more than 469,040 kids and 228,800 parents a year. This means that the company interviews a new family member somewhere in the world every 45 seconds.

Download your free copy of our Inaugural Brand Management Playbook at: https://go.theinsightsfamily. com/brand

Stavros

Will they all be switching to headsets?