Tech giant Meta extends its smart glasses product range, placing wagers on the upcoming era of augmented reality technology.
Meta, the tech giant formerly known as Facebook, has unveiled its latest innovation in the realm of smart glasses. The Meta Ray-Ban Display smart glasses, developed in partnership with Ray-Ban and Oakley's parent company, EssilorLuxottica, are set to revolutionise the way we consume information.
Priced at $799, the Meta Ray-Ban Display smart glasses offer a unique blend of style and technology. With built-in screens for viewing messages, photos, and more, these glasses aim to bring the digital world into our everyday lives in a seamless and stylish manner.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's CEO, has expressed his ambition to create great-looking glasses that deliver personal superintelligence and realistic holograms. He predicts that AI-infused smart glasses will be the 'next major computing platform,' eventually replacing the smartphone.
The smart glasses market is indeed on the rise, with projections indicating it will reach $8.26 billion annually by the end of the decade, according to analytics firm Grand View Research. Last year, the global smart glasses market was estimated at nearly $2 billion.
However, challenges lie ahead for Meta's virtual and augmented reality unit, Reality Labs. The division lost $4.5 billion in the second quarter of 2022 on revenue of $370 million, indicating ongoing struggles in the metaverse business.
Despite these challenges, the Meta Ray-Ban Display smart glasses have already made a significant impact. They have become the top-selling AI glasses in the world, with millions of units sold since their launch.
The smart glasses come with sensor-packed bracelets called neural bands, enabling control with subtle finger movements. Features include built-in cameras for hands-free photos or video, digital assistant access, and real-time language translation.
Meta began investing heavily in virtual reality and the metaverse about four years ago, a move that culminated in the company changing its name to Meta in late 2021. The company's vision is to connect us to real-world superpowers as we move throughout the day, tapping into a wealth of information while staying present in the moment.
Leo Gebbie, a principal analyst at CCS Insight, however, has expressed doubts about the short-term profitability of Meta's Reality Labs division due to smart glasses sales.
Despite this, the Meta Ray-Ban Display smart glasses are a testament to Meta's commitment to pushing the boundaries of technology and redefining the way we interact with the digital world. As Zuckerberg aptly puts it, 'The next computing platform continues to come into focus.'
