AR/VR Headset Shipments Almost Doubled in 2021 Reaching 11.2m Units

According to the latest International Data Corporation's (IDC) report, shipments of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headsets have significantly grown in 2021. As the firm states, approximately 11.2 million AR/VR gadgets were sold globally almost doubling the previous year's result.

Meta’s Quest 2 became the top-selling product last year with a 78% share of the combined AR/VR market in 2021, followed by DPVR – the device which is popular across Asian markets – that captured a 5.1% share. ByteDance’s Pico VR products ranked third with a 4.5% share.

Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers, noted: "Meta has led the AR/VR industry by offering a very accessibly priced headset and by moving beyond the core gaming audience, piquing the interest of non-gamers as well as businesses."

He also added that currently, the company "lacks major competitors", although chances are the situation on the market will change in the coming 12-18 months when Sony will re-enter the AR/VR space with the PSVR2. In addition, the researcher expects that Apple and other smartphone companies may eventually launch AR/VR headsets.

The company also forecasts that, in the foreseeable future, the market will continue to grow rapidly. This year, shipments are expected to increase by 46.9%, and in 2026, the firm believes, the industry will overcome the milestone of 50 million devices sold. So, the CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) for this period will be approximately 35.1%.

You can learn more by reading the IDC's report here. Also, don't forget to join our new Reddit page, our new Telegram channel, follow us on Instagram and Twitter, where we are sharing breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.