[jyl]

I’ve been interested in AR/VR glasses and googles for a couple years. Tried using an Oculus VR Goggle as a replacement for my five monitor travel workstation; it kind of worked, the current Oculus would work even better, but ultimately I just didn’t want to wear VR goggles for 8 hours a day. Then I bought the Meta Rayban Smart Glasses, I like them enough that I wear them about a quarter of the time, and got even more interested in AR glasses.

There are basically three types of AR glasses right now.
1. Glasses with camera, mic, speaker, and heavy use of AI. The current Meta Smart Glasses are probably the best example of this. Basically you use them to listen to music, get audible notifications of incoming phone calls and messages, talk on the phone or reply to the messages using speaker/mic, ask the AI stuff, point the camera at something and ask the AI questions about it, etc. There is no visual functionality, they are simply glasses - I put transition Rx lenses in mine. I don’t have much use for the AI part, basically use them as earbuds and notifications. They look like normal glasses. No cable, Bluetooth connection.
2. Glasses with high resolution screens in the lenses, also mic and speakers. The Xreal and Viture are the current leaders here. The main purpose of these is to be a substitute for a huge monitor - the glasses show you the equivalent of a 100” display, you can watch movies, work on multiple “monitors”, play games, with the glasses cabled to your laptop or phone or tablet or mini-PC. The speakers work as, well, speakers. I don’t think you really use these to make phone calls or message. The screens can be switched from transparent to dark. They look like big spacey sunglasses, kinda weird but better than sitting in a coffee shop with VR goggles covering your face - but there’s a cable running from the end of the eyeglass arm to your main device, hard to miss that.
3. Glasses with low resolution “heads up display” projected on the lenses, also -sometimes - speakers and mic. The displays are mono, usually green - sort of like a fighter HUD or the like - and display info like time, temp, calendar alert, message alerts, several lines of text, some simple map/directions, other text/number info. Currently, you wear these as a substitute for constantly checking your phone. The software seems immature, but you can imagine viewing your heart rate and speed if cycling, vertical and gradient if skiing, getting news alerts or stock price alerts, whatever info can be transmitted in several lines of alphanumeric text or simple graphics. The Even Realities G1 is a good example of these. They look like normal glasses, though others may notice flashes of green light over your eyes occasionally if at just the right angle. No cable.

Lots of energy is being directed to AR glasses, as tech companies search for the Next Big Thing after the smartphone and have figured out that no one wants to wear bulky goggles out in public. They will get better and these categories may melt together. So far the only big tech company in the market is Meta, but Apple, Google, will join. The tech and miniaturization are challenging.

Is anyone interested in these at all? Can you imagine wanting, wearing these sorts of glasses, someday?