Vision Pro rental by the hour or day, ahead of launch in China

Some enterprising types are offering Vision Pro rental in China to satisfy demand to try the product, which is currently only available for purchase in the US.

Just one of these rental outlets says that it has had more than 10,000 customers since the service launched, just a couple of days after the device first went on sale …

South China Morning Post (SCMP) reports.

Dozens of adverts for such rentals in Beijing, Shanghai, Xian in central Shaanxi province and Nanjing in eastern Jiangsu province, could be found on Monday, according to a search by the Post […]

Vision Space, a Beijing-based VR start-up, has several bricks-and-mortar stores that allow customers to try out the device for 98 yuan (US$13.60) an hour. The biggest one, in Hopson One mall in eastern Beijing, has received more than 10,000 customers since February 4, according to company founder and chief executive Song Lei.

Pricing is said to be around 98 yuan ($13.60) per hour, or 1500 yuan ($208) per day – a hefty price to pay for early access to the device. In the US, Apple offers a free demo session, and customers can buy the headset and then return it for a full refund within 14 days.

For those renting out the devices, it seems a potentially viable way to get a free Vision Pro, with one person saying that he’s fully-booked, and expects to recoup the full cost of the device within the first three months.

The only potential barrier to this plan is the possibility of Apple rolling out the device to China before people have earned enough to pay for them. CEO Tim Cook has promised that Vision Pro will go on sale in China “soon.” One report suggested this would be in April or May. Even so, rental plus resale revenue should be enough to make it a profitable endeavor.

Photo: iPhone JD for 9to5Mac