TrendForce: Global demand for VR equipment rebounds in 2023
TrendForce released the latest data and research. It is estimated that the global VR device shipments will be about 8.58 million units in 2022, a year-on-year decrease of 5.3%. There are three reasons for the decline. The first, continuous high inflation suppresses consumer demand for end products; the second, many VR brands will no longer release new products this year, or postpone their releases; finally, Meta’s price adjustment for Quest equipment has affected demand.
At the same time, TrendForce also forecasted global VR device shipments in 2023, believing that there will be a rebound, with a year-on-year increase of 20.6%. According to TrendForce, new products including Sony PlayStation VR2 and Meta Quest 3 will be released next year, which will become the driving force for the growth of VR market demand in 2023.
Meta is a relatively active company in the VR/AR market. However, with the increase in costs, high pricing has affected shipments. It is estimated that Quest Pro shipments will be up to 250,000 units this year. Significant growth will not resume until the launch of Quest 3, with estimated shipments of around 7.25 million units in 2023. Next year, Sony will also start to make efforts in the VR market. The shipment of PlayStation VR2 is estimated to be around 1.6 million units, which is likely to become the main growth driver of the VR market next year.
While shipments of VR devices are on the rise again next year, the numbers look good, but growth is still limited compared to past expectations. At present, VR devices are developing towards smaller sizes, better performance, and more sensing functions. These three trends have led to an increase in hardware costs, which is ultimately reflected in the retail price of the product, and have also raised the threshold of the market, hindering other electronics brands from entering the VR market.
