Global shipments of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headset shipments, excluding Google Cardboard and other Cardboard-like devices, grew 25.5% on year to 2.1 million units in the second quarter of 2017.

Although second-quarter shipment volumes were down slightly from the previous quarter, recent price cuts on existing products and announced plans for new products are expected to lay the groundwork for a successful holiday season.

VR products once again made up more than 98% of shipments in the combined AR/VR market. On the VR side, screen-less viewers accounted for over half of all the headset shipments during the quarter. Tethered VR headsets captured 43%, up from the 34% in the previous quarter, driven in large part to Sony's ongoing success with the PlayStation VR and Oculus increasing shipment volumes thanks to price cuts.

Meanwhile, in the still very small AR headset segment, shipments actually declined in the second quarter as several consumer-focused products with big launches last year failed to sustain their volumes a year later.

Samsung Electronics continued to lead in the market with its Gear VR shipments reached 568,000 units and accounted for 26.7% share in the second quarter.

Sony ranked second with its PSVR shipments reaching 519,400 units for 24.4% share, while shipments of Oculus Rift VR headsets totaled 246,900 units for 11.6% share.

TCL took four spot with its Alcatel VR headset shipments totaling 106,400 units in the quarter and captured 5% share.

Stiff competition led HTC Vive to drop in the ranks. HTC Vive shipments were flat on year to reach 94,500 units in the second quarter and captured 4.4% share.