Apple announced the Vision Pro, its first mixed-reality headset (or "spatial computer"), last year, and it could launch by February. There's a lot of talk surrounding the new headset and a lot of secrecy from Apple about what it will be like to actually use the Vision Pro. Make no mistake: based on what we've seen in previews, the Vision Pro will absolutely change the way we use computers and devices forever. It's immersive, powerful, and intuitive by all accounts. But even with all those things being true, I'm still not going to buy it. Here are four reasons why.

4 It's way too expensive

I can't justify spending more than $4,000 on a headset

Getting the easy point out of the way first, let's talk about the price of Apple Vision Pro. It'll retail for $3,500, and that figure blows most other mainstream headsets out of the water. And if you require prescription lenses to see, you'll have to shell out even more to buy Zeiss prescription lens inserts for the headset. Pricing for these isn't official yet, but early guesses suggest they'll cost at least a few hundred dollars.

Anybody who disagrees with these estimates likely hasn't purchased prescription glasses before. Basic lens correction is cheap, but advanced prescriptions and progressive lenses still come at a premium. Put simply, $3,500 would have been a tough sell, but paying even more is a non-starter for me. If you don't require prescription lenses, you should still expect to pay more for things like cases and accessories, which will certainly be pricey if other Apple accessories are anything to go by. The overall issue isn't with the retail price of Vision Pro; it's about the fact that the massive cost isn't all-inclusive.

3 Comfort might be a problem

The Vision Pro's size might limit how long you can use it

I'm interested to see how customers can interact with Vision Pro in retail stores before buying it because comfort will be a massive factor. Imagine shelling out thousands of dollars for a headset that you can only wear for a short period before feeling discomfort. This is something I'm concerned about with Vision Pro and hands-on experiences seem to confirm this. XDA editor Ben Sin went hands-on with Vision Pro last year, and he noticed the headset felt heavy while it was on his head even after a short session.

We don't know the exact weight of the Vision Pro, but estimates put it at around a pound. Sin said that it felt like at least 1.5 pounds, and guesses vary between other people who've tried the device. These would put it either slightly above or slightly below the Meta Quest 3.

The problem is that I don't trust Apple to make Vision Pro feel comfortable. I've had a pretty horrific experience with the AirPods Max, which ditched plastics commonly used in over-ear headphones for aluminum, and it feels heavy and uncomfortable as a result. The Vision Pro takes a similar approach in the headset form factor, so I'm skeptical.

2 visionOS isn't special

It resembles macOS in a lot of ways, which is disappointing

The hardware of Vision Pro is killer, and it's way ahead of anything that's on the market today. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like the software will be up to par with the headset's internal components at launch. Apple had the chance to completely reimagine its user interface for touch gestures and mixed-reality experiences, but it didn't do that. Instead, visionOS looks like macOS with some translucent elements that reflect a user's surroundings. It's pretty cool, but visionOS is nothing groundbreaking. Granted, the OS could've changed between previews and launch, but Apple hasn't given us much to go by.

I'm hoping that visionOS is to macOS what iPadOS was to iOS. iPads ran scaled-up versions of iOS for many years and now have their own iPadOS software that takes advantage of the tablet form factor. Perhaps visionOS could evolve from macOS in the future as well, making changes that utilize Vision Pro's headset form factor.

1 Vision Pro is a secondary device

It won't outright replace a single device I own today

I could try and get past all these issues and buy Vision Pro anyway, but there's no reason to do that. The headset wouldn't replace a single device in my daily workflow, becoming only a secondary device. I'd still use my Macs, smartphones, tablets, TVs, and Asus ROG Ally daily, even if I spent $3,500 on the Vision Pro headset. In fact, I can't think of a specific way that Vision Pro would change how I use technology. You can use it instead of a computer or instead of a TV, but it wouldn't outright replace either of those devices.

Vision Pro is so powerful that it can't really be compared to current mixed-reality headsets on the market, which is why Apple calls it a "spatial computer." A lot of us are captivated by what the Vision Pro can do, but I suspect there are many people who aren't sure how and when they'll use it. Until those questions are answered or the Vision Pro can replace a device category, I'm holding off on buying one.

Future generations might earn my dollars

I've used a few first-generation Apple products, namely the iPad and the Apple Watch. For those who don't remember, these two products were pretty awful at launch but were one-upped by impressive second-generation replacements. I think this might be the case with Vision Pro. The first generation will give developers time to create new apps and experiences for Vision Pro, allow Apple to figure out where Vision Pro should be improved, and hopefully, result in some cost-cutting.

Vision Pro will be a game-changer when it launches in a month or two. But in a few years, it might be a game-changer I'd actually buy.