Augmented Reality Smart Glasses
Whether you’re looking for a pair of augmented reality smart glasses to consume content or want a fully customizable AR workspace, there are many options on the market. Look for a display with a clear, visible image and stereo speakers for audio, along with calling capabilities and digital assistance.
AR is useful for a variety of purposes, including determining how a piece of furniture will fit in a room or elevating gaming experiences. Other features to consider include stat/fitness tracking, hands-free voice control, and media capture.
Xreal Air
Four years after I first profiled Beijing-based nReal (now Xreal) the company remains the leader in consumer-grade AR glasses. Its Xreal Air frames give you a virtual semi-transparent screen for video, apps and games in an open-ear design that’s lighter than a VR headset and less expensive than many previous models.
The display is bright and clear, with vivid but slightly oversaturated colors. A version for the workplace adds electrochromic lenses that darken at the press of a button, which makes it more useful in sunlight or in the presence of others. The only real flaw is audio leakage — anyone sitting or standing near you when content is playing on the glasses will be able to hear it at moderate volumes.
These AR glasses are designed to be paired with a compatible high-end Android smartphone, which essentially acts as a computer monitor. They also work with a few dozen existing apps and can show content from the Steam gaming platform using an optional $119 Xreal Beam accessory that supports the same streaming protocols as a TV or set-top box.
I found the Xreal Air easy to use and comfortable enough for augmented reality smart glasses long sessions. They offer a full range of gesture controls and the earpieces feature touchpads and speakers, plus a controller ring for games. Unfortunately, they still lack features that would make them more compelling, such as hand-tracking, object tracking and recognition and virtual keyboards. There are community-based efforts to cobble together extra functionality for these glasses, but it involves a lot of hoops jumping.
Inmo Air 2
The China-based company INMO is back with its second iteration of standalone AR glasses. The INMO Air 2 pushes the limits of what is possible in smartphone-like technology packed into a pair of smart glasses. It boasts a wide range of advancements in display quality, processing power, camera capabilities, audio experience, and visual adaptability, all of which set it apart from the INMO Air1.
The INMO Air2 is equipped with dual full-color Micro-OLED displays with high contrast, high definition, and a 100% sRGB color gamut. It also has a binocular FOV of 26 degrees and reflective Waveguide display technologies, delivering vivid hues and stunning imagery that will blow you away. The INMO Air2 also supports screen mirroring from iOS and Android devices, allowing you to enjoy your favorite apps directly on your glasses.
Moreover, you can navigate the INMO Air2 using its intuitive ring controls or by touch gestures on the arms of the glasses. Besides, it comes with tinted lenses for outdoor use and plain ones for indoors. The INMO Air2 also has built-in speakers for immersive audio. The device has a battery life of around five and a half hours of continuous usage and 55 hours of standby.
The INMO Air2 has a built-in navigation applet that projects maps on the screen for hands-free guidance. However, it is not as augmented reality headset accurate as other industry-standard navigation apps.
Lenovo ThinkReality A3
Lenovo ThinkReality A3 augmented reality smart glasses provide the power of multiple monitors without all the clutter. This AR headset allows you to consolidate multiple screens into a single goggle set to improve productivity and efficiency. It even allows you to share your experience with others for collaboration and feedback.
This headset also offers the ability to view and manipulate 3D designs. This can help you get a better sense of scale and proportions. This can be especially helpful if you are working on a design project. It also helps you understand how a space will look before making any significant changes.
Another great feature of this product is that it can be used with your smartphone or tablet. This makes it easy to use on the go. Additionally, the headset has a low-profile design and is comfortable to wear. This is perfect for a variety of work environments.
Lenovo’s advanced augmented reality smart glasses are designed to advance productivity in the workplace and maximize creativity. They allow users to create a customized, expanded personal workspace anywhere—from a virtual monitor at home to guided schematics on the factory floor. These versatile smart glasses also offer privacy, ensuring that only the user can see their virtual screen. This is ideal for businesses and individuals who need to work outside of their offices, such as those in coffee shops or conference rooms.
Meta
Meta is another of the most well-known AR smart glasses makers and it’s aiming to make its devices a staple for users with visual impairments. The company is reportedly working on true augmented reality that will provide magnification and color enhancement features, making them more useful for those with low vision.
The new Meta MR1s feature a more sleek design than the previous model. They’re lighter and have a more comfortable frame, while the earpieces offer better audio quality with less leakage and deeper bass. The MR1s also have improved photo and video capabilities, with a higher-resolution camera and a more powerful processor. The earpieces can now handle incoming call notifications, as well as audio from apps that are running on the device.
A tap of the Meta MR1s’ button records up to 30 seconds of video, and a tap and hold will snap a picture. They have a small LED indicator near the camera to let others know that they’re recording. The glasses will also stop recording if someone covers the indicator with something.
Mark Zuckerberg has recently stepped up his involvement with the Meta team, and he has installed longtime company leaders in key roles. The VP of AR who oversees all the company’s glasses products, Alex Himel, has been with Meta for 13 years, and she reports directly to CTO Andrew Bosworth.