Smartglasses powered by augmented reality are the latest fashion because the smartphone market is slowly reaching saturation. Snap Inc. announced its latest AR-powered smartglasses, called SPECS, that aim to strike a middle ground between underpowered AI glasses and heavy headsets you can't wear all the time.
Available in two sizes, Snap SPECS are made from high-performance Swiss TR90 polymer and feature removable inserts to support prescription lenses. Its 47mm model weighs about 132g; the bigger 52mm model weighs 136g. Snap Inc has been spreading the word about the new glasses for a while now. Earlier this year, it even spun off its smart glasses team into a subsidiary called Specs Inc.
Its proprietary LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) display delivers a 51-degree field of view and 16 million colors. Snap says the device gives the feel of a 24-inch desktop monitor when you're working, and of a 115-inch home cinema screen placed about 10 feet away when watching a movie.
A pair of custom stereo speakers and 6x high-SNR MEMS microphones are built into the temples of the smartglasses to deliver open-ear audio while you cast a screen, stream content, open a whiteboard, or collaborate with others. Snap Inc. patted itself on the back, saying the smartglasses don't need tethering or a puck to connect to a computer.
Under the hood, SPECS draw its power from two Snapdragon processors: one for computer vision and another for running Lenses. The device supports fast hand tracking, low latency, and responsive interactions that help digital content feel anchored in the real world, according to the company, which claims that SPECS can "deliver 7-millisecond motion-to-photon latency."
The smartglasses offer up to four hours of battery life on a single charge while providing AI assistance, Bluetooth notifications, Lenses, audio/video playback, and more. The battery life could jump to 20 hours of mixed use when the charging case is included.
You can view and interact with AR Lenses anchored directly to the physical world around you, and an on-board AI assistant uses the camera to see what's around to answer questions or provide real-time help with tasks.
Snap Inc. noted that it filed more than 7,000 patents during the development of SPECS. It's trying to build the required digital ecosystem around the smartglasses, and said that developers have already published hundreds of Lenses for SPECS.
Moreover, their electrochromic lenses use the same technology available in Boeing 787 Dreamliner windows, enabling them to shift from clear to tinted in just 10 seconds when you walk out of your house.
Snap SPECS are now available for pre-order on the official website with a $2,195 price tag ($200 refundable deposit). The smartglasses are expected to ship in the US, UK, and France during the Fall this year.
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