One of my initial Vision Pro questions concerned the durability of the glass. When Apple opened preorders, we learned the Apple Vision Pro kit comes with a cover that protects the EyeSight display’s glass. That didn’t fully answer my questions about durability, and I said we’d learn more from early adopters.
We’re now starting to get the first answers about the Vision Pro’s durability. The good news is that I haven’t seen reports about accidental drops that would damage the screen. The bad news is that some reports have started popping up online about a strange type of damage.
Some users report hairline cracks appearing right down the middle of the glass, with no explanation. These cracks supposedly appeared without drops or other impacts.
Per MacRumors, the first report of a Vision Pro crack report hit the Vision Pro subreddit some 18 days ago. Several others appeared in the past few days.
I know what some people’s first reactions might be. Those unfortunate Vision Pro users might have worn the device wrong. Here’s how that first user detailed their experience:
To be entirely honest, as long as the tracking is not affected, I don’t really care how the outer glass looks like. But here is the thing. For the last 3 days I have never used my Vision Pro outside of my bed, and whenever I am not using it, I always have the soft outer cover on and the unit has never been dropped or anything like that, and I just noticed the crack last night. I wonder what caused the crack, and whether it’s a manufacturing defect or not.
All these cracks are incredibly similar, suggesting some kind of stress point above the nose bridge. It’s unclear what causes the extra stress, but all the cracks extend vertically, almost in a straight line.
As a reminder, the Vision Pro front features “a singular piece of three-dimensionally formed laminated glass flows into an aluminum alloy frame that curves to wrap around your face.”
As we’ve learned from a teardown, the front of the glass is actually plastic that scratches easily, with the glass sitting underneath. But that can’t be related to the hairline cracks that some Redditors encountered.
One theory is that the glass experiences stress as you tie the headbands. Either the Solo Knit Band or the Dual Loop Band will need adjusting so the seal is perfect. Also, the Vision Pro weight requires the proper adjustment of straps to make the weight bearable.
Another theory says the glass might overheat and then crack. Vision Pro teardowns have shown that the spatial computer features two big fans, similar to MacBook Pros. These move away heat from your face. That’s the only source of heat, as the Vision Pro has no built-in battery. Placing the cover on top of the glass might further exacerbate the problem. These are all speculations, of course.
That said, the Vision Pro will not turn off if left connected to power. It will continue to use power as apps will sync content. The spatial computer will power down only after 24 hours of sitting idle. It turns out some Vision Pro owners woke up to find a cracked Vision Pro.
One Vision Pro owner with Apple Care Plus discovered what repairing the glass means. Apple will charge a $300 deductible on top of that $500 Apple Care coverage to fix the glass. Apparently, there is no policy for this kind of glass damage.
A different person paid $100 to upgrade to a 1TB version, but they got a free replacement. Therefore, your experience will vary, depending on your local Apple store.
If this is a manufacturing defect, how many people would be affected is unclear. It might take a while until Apple acknowledges it as one. After all, Apple has sold around 200,000 units during preorders, and only in the US. That was before some people started returning them.
I am certain that Apple is investigating these incidents. Real-life use is how Apple can detect issues with the Vision Pro, including hardware-related ones. If it’s a manufacturing problem, we’ll learn soon enough. And Apple will likely fix it.