Early hopes for a cheaper Vision Air were treated as a miracle in the making until Samsung killed the G VR display project meant to make it viable. The latest whisper says Jobs Mob has stepped away from the Vision Air and probably told Samsung to stop faffing about with the low-cost glass-based micro display.

Samsung had been working with Jobs Mob on a glass substrate micro OLED panel called G VR, which was supposed to ditch the expensive silicon approach and give the Vision Air a fighting chance of being sold to people who do not own shares in the company. Dealsite claims Jobs Mob scrapped the whole idea and effectively told Samsung to pack up the tools.

No one is saying why the Vision Air has been dumped, although Apple seems keen to rush out a pair of smart glasses instead. The first version might appear in 2026, although it will not have an AR display.

The AR-enabled follow-up is supposedly pencilled for 2027. Apple apparently thinks lightweight specs will appeal to more punters than a bulky headset that makes you look like a confused welder, which is why it is throwing resources at the glasses rather than the cheap headset.

Bloomberg hack Mark Gurman has pointed out that the Vision Pro’s heavy weight and ludicrous price make it a nightmare to shift, and said Jobs Mob is crawling at a snail’s pace when it comes to adding features people want.

He reckons the company has finally twigged that AR headsets are too niche to justify another premium lump while smart glasses could become everyday gear in the next decade.

Apple once dreamed of ruling the mixed reality kingdom, although for now it appears stuck with a luxury headset no one asked for and a scrapped budget model that never made it out of the wilderness.