When the iPhone came out, people criticized it for the lack of keyboard and 3G. The price was similar to other premium phones of the time.
VR has always been about to revolutionize computing in the next n years. The technology has been available for decades, but so far nobody has been able to find good mainstream use cases for it.
How has the technology been available for decades? There are many requirements for useful headsets beyond just strapping a low-resolution screen to each eye. Even the Vision Pro at $3500+ isn't quite there yet: it's heavy, external battery with a short battery life, has a limited field of view.
The technology to make VR/AR useful for specialized applications has been available for decades. For example, South African fighter pilots had AR sights in the 70s, and the Soviets copied the idea in the 80s. The technology has improved over the decades, but so far nobody has found good mainstream uses for it.
VR has always been about to revolutionize computing in the next n years. The technology has been available for decades, but so far nobody has been able to find good mainstream use cases for it.