By Mike Robuck
IDC reported global shipments of AR and VR headsets dropped 20.9 per cent year-on-year in 2022, citing continued economic headwinds and an overall lack of device options as factors.
The company placed shipments at 8.8 million units, with Meta Platforms’ devices dominating on an 80 per cent share.
IDC placed ByteDance’s Pico model in second place on a 10 per cent share, with the top-five rounded out by DPVR, HTC Vive and iQIYI, respectively.
Ironically, IDC noted the success of the Meta Quest 2 device in 2021 contributed to the unflattering annual comparison.
The research company also noted consumers had more disposable income in 2021, and highlighted an overall lack of vendors in the AR and VR space as factors in the decline.
IDC noted Nreal as a stand-out performer, with shipments of close to 100,000 AR units giving it the top spot in that sector alone, and sixth in the broader comparison.
Research manager Jitesh Ubrani explained Nreal had slowly grown its presence “by appealing to mobile gamers”, while Meta Platforms “and ByteDance duke it out in the VR segment”.
Ubrani added Meta Platforms had built “a moat” using “various first- and third-party content”, but noted this was an area offering rivals including “Sony and potentially Apple” an opportunity to “provide meaningful competition”.
