What Happens if You Pay $10,000 to Buy an Apple Vision Pro Early?
It's hardly hyperbole to call the Apple Vision Pro VR headset 2024's biggest tech launch even though it hasn't yet released. It's also not hyperbole to say that it is seriously bananas that some enterprising people are attempting to resell Apple's latest flagship gizmo for nearly three times the retail price nearly a month before it actually drops.
Apple's $3,500 Vision Pro headset is arguably the biggest thing in VR probably since the first Oculus was released nearly a decade ago in 2016 (sorry, Meta Quest!) so there's plenty of demand for this thing, even beyond typical Apple hype.
This isn't just Apple's biggest swing at virtual and augmented reality but possibly the genesis of an entirely new era of VR and AR.
If anyone can make this kinda tech sexy, it's Apple. A stylish headset may be all it takes to get people to buy into VR, regardless of the cost.
The debut of any new Apple product is typically a sell-out moment akin to, say, a new generation of video game consoles; everyone wants to be the first person with the new doodad in-hand. It's why there are so many shockingly long queues of would-be customers on Apple's launch days.
Similarly, tech reviews — particularly those that cover new Apple gear —are a hot commodity initially measured in speed rather than quality, at least until that first wave of reactions crests.
Whoever dies with the most stuff wins. And whoever reviews the most stuff the quickest wins even more.
As such, there may be someone out there willing to cough up $10,000 for the honor of owning an Apple Vision Pro over three weeks prior to the headset's actual release date. Maybe.
On resale site StockX, there are somehow already three Apple Vision Pro sets up for grabs, with prices starting at over $9,980. It is incredibly unclear how this happened.
Apple is famously strict about granting early access to its new tech, so much so that even developers given first-look Vision Pro kits to create launch software are expected to only use the device within locked rooms and out of sight of "unauthorized" users.
Similarly, Apple is particular about sending out review gear — reviewers sign a contract before even being allowed to discuss the product and then must comply with no-nonsense publishing embargos.
So, that there appears to be not one but three Vision Pro headsets floating around is borderline inconceivable.
Could the inflated listings have come from overzealous sellers who've pre-ordered the Vision Pro? Perhaps but StockX's selling guidelines stipulate a shipping deadline of two business days. Otherwise the deal is off and sellers are penalized.
It's also not like you'd get a fake, considering that StockX vaunts its verification process in press releases and to investors. Authenticity is its whole brand.
It's a strange proposition, all in all, begging the question: what exactly would happen if you actually paid $10,000 for one of the Apple Vision Pro sets listed for sale.
Shame it'll take five figures to find out.
