Wasn't this also the case with the Apple Watch back in 2015? The hardware there was a 1st-generation dud too.
The problem with AVP is that the people who DID buy it can't manufacture reasons to USE it. Apple needed to have a very strong push out of the gate with new content weekly.
It was always clear that the form factor was workable and the execution just needed to evolve a tiny bit. The AVP has an unworkable form factor: 2 pounds of headset and battery, and wearing it means mussing your hair and makeup and smashing a strap-on dorkbox to the front of your face.
That's entirely unworkable in ways that cannot be fixed with a software update or even next year's incremental hardware improvements. This form factor is a decade away from mainstream at best.
This is nothing like the Watch and only someone with a child's view of these products would make that claim.
I only use the watch when surfing or doing mountain biking. It's still not all that great of a device, and not much (in a practical sense) has changed since 2015. Limited functionality and what is there is frustrating to use, especially while in action.