Augmented and Virtual Reality Headsets Report
This week, two separate articles on Business Wire and Erie News Now reported on a new Tracker research program by the International Data Corporation (IDC), which focuses on the Augmented and Virtual Reality headset market.
Significant points mentioned by both articles include:
- According to IDC, worldwide shipments of ARVR headsets will increase by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 108.3% from 2016 to 2020
- IDC is currently focusing on three headset categories: tethered head-mounted displays (such as the HTC Vive), standalone head-mounted displays (such as Microsoft’s Hololens), and screenless viewers (such as Samsung’s Gear VR)
- IDC expects AR headsets to increase due to technology becoming more affordable and OEMs entering the market, despite VR devices currently leading the market in terms of volume
- Jitesh Ubrani, the senior research analyst for IDC Mobile Device Trackers, is quoted to have said that this year has been important for Augmented Reality, and that the technology may create a change in computing to rival the smartphone, despite it having a long way to go before mass adoption
- Tom Mainelli, the program vice president of Devices and ARVR, is quoted to have said that AR is a long-term opportunity, while VR will capture most media attention in the short-term
- A table is shown, which compares worldwide ARVR headset shipments from 2016, and predicted shipments in 2020
The two reports can be read here – BusinessWire and ErieNews