Latest news with #AugmentedWorldExpo
Tom's Guide
a day ago
- Tom's Guide
Best of AWE 2025: The top 7 XR gadgets that caught our eye
Augmented World Expo (AWE) is a show focused on the world of virtual reality headsets and smart glasses, and how those devices are changing the future. The 2025 edition was a leap forward from previous years with a massive presence from well-known tech companies like Qualcomm, Sony, and Meta. Smart glasses are getting better and better, and headsets like the Meta Quest 3 are receiving more ways to play and work. And we haven't even mentioned the various wearables that can connect with your phone or these devices. Much of the show is focused on the future of headsets and glasses, but there were a number of products that are coming soon or are available now. We were able to go hands-and face-on with several products. Here's our picks for the best of AWE 2025 that you need to know about. Yes, these are the AR glasses that Viture has been teasing for a while now. While I can't tell you much about my hands-on time until they are announced, the fact that I've immediately given them the "best of show" trophy is hopefully enough of a green flag of what you'll get here. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. And what you do get is the best screen I've ever seen with a massive 60-degree field of view — all with that same great color production that Viture is known for. On top of that, with such a huge field of view, the glasses don't look or feel significantly larger to pull it off, and there's zero fringing around the outer edges of the display. Put simply, if you've been waiting for the best external display for your eyes on long journeys, I recommend you wait for these. Snapchat had a massive presence at AWE 2025 with multiple demos of its current Snap Spectacles, including AI-enabled object recognition and linked glasses for multi-person experiences. The biggest news was that its rebranded Specs will launch in 2026. Developers have had access to the prototype versions of the new smart glasses since late 2024, with a ton of expected "Lenses" or apps already in development. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel announced that the new glasses would be lighter and a "much smaller form factor" than the current Spectacles and the dev kits that we've seen. AWE 2025 was filled with VR accessories that ranged from haptic gloves to giant mech-suit-esque apparati. Unfortunately, many were either prototypes, meant for businesses, or too big for most people to feasibly use in their homes (looking at you, MEK). bHaptics showed off its TactSuit, a series of wearable VR accessories that add haptic feedback to your VR gaming. And we got to try some, including a vest, gloves, and sleeves. The accessories work with the Meta Quest 3 headset and were a lot of fun, even during simple tech demos. They're a bit spendy, but if you're invested in VR gaming, they are worth the cost. Controlling AR content on glasses has been a bit of a minefield. Either you've got to use a secondary device like a wand (like the Xreal Beam Pro), or it's a whole hand-tracking situation that doesn't really work without more raw computation. That's where the KiWear Smart Ring comes in — accurately capturing pinch and hand movements to a degree that it all feels like spatial computing without the need for an Apple Vision Pro on your face. Whether it's pinching to select, swirling your finger around to change the volume, or turning your hand palm-up for additional interactions, it's all here with this ring. It could possibly bring on a new wave of controlling AR content. We all know that AI goes hand-in-hand with smart glasses to deliver an immeasurably better experience — take a look at the Ray-Ban Metas for example. But it can all be a bit impersonal. How do you make that AI more personalized to you? A lot of sensors, and that's what Emteq is doing. Simply put, this company has delivered a fitness and wellness tracker better than any smart watch or smart ring ever could be. With nine optical sensors, it's able to measure your facial muscles to a near-microscopic level. This has uses in being able to create an avatar for talking in video calls, but the real immediate benefit I saw is in healthcare. Not only can you use the cameras to take a picture of your food and use ChatGPT to give you a caloric breakdown of what you're about to eat, but you can also get a reading on whether you're chewing too fast, which may cause digestion problems. And then the subconscious muscle twitches in your face can give it a read on your emotional well-being too. This is true personalized AI, and a look at what smart glasses could be as real assistants. The Wizpr ring caught us by surprise as we wandered the AWE 2025 show floor. It's an AI-enabled smart ring that features a microphone you can use to speak with AI. We tested it, and you can just about whisper, as the name implies, into the ring to give it commands or prompts. On the loud show floor, we were able to ask questions like, "What's the weather like?" or "How far away is the nearest Starbucks?" and the interface appeared to hear and understand the prompts. It can also be used to control some smart home devices like lights or media in your AirPods. Snapdragon AR1+ is a turbo-boosted version of what you see in the Ray-Ban Metas, but it's so much more than that. You see, one of the common obstacles with AI in smart glasses is the time taken to receive a response from the cloud, or latency. But this is able to run a 1-billion parameter model entirely locally, which is great for both privacy and speed. On top of that, there are improvements to camera quality, display quality, and energy efficiency. This chip puts Qualcomm on a path towards smart glasses that cut the cord to any phone or additional computing puck, and sets them towards a future where your smart glasses could replace what you may be reading this on right now.
Android Authority
a day ago
- Android Authority
Your phone won't be powering Xreal's upcoming Android XR glasses
TL;DR Xreal's Android XR glasses will come with a puck-like processing device. The puck will feature an unspecified Qualcomm Snapdragon chip. The glasses will have the largest screen the company has ever made. There's been plenty of talk about Google, Apple, and Meta all working on AR glasses, but they aren't the only players in the game. Xreal is currently working on its own pair of AR glasses, known as Project Aura. Other than the fact that they'll run on Android XR, not much is known about the device yet. However, Xreal shared a few new details this week. The Xreal team made an appearance at Augmented World Expo 2025 on Tuesday. As reported by Gizmodo, the company didn't release any new images or offer any demos, but it did reveal that your phone won't be able to handle the kind of processing Aura demands. Instead of using a phone as a computing device, Aura will use a separate, tethered, puck-like device for its computational needs. This puck-like device, small enough to fit in your pocket, will house an unspecified Qualcomm Snapdragon chip. It's unclear if Xreal plans to use the same SoC that's heading to Samsung's Project Moohan — the Snapdragon XR2 Plus Gen 2. It's also said that this puck will be detachable, in case you want to store the glasses and the puck separately. While a Snapdragon processor will power the puck, the glasses will have their own chip. This processor is said to be a modified version of the X1 chip found in the Xreal One glasses, called X1S. It was also confirmed that the glasses will have front-facing sensors, similar to the Meta Quest 3. Xreal also recently updated its website to add that Aura will have a 70-degree field of view (FOV). The website claims this will be the largest screen the company has made to date. To accomplish this, the team is using a 'flat prism lens' that features a triangular-shaped pane. Although this pane of glass is 40% smaller than the glass in its older devices, it enables a wider FOV on the horizontal axis. Considering the heavy processing demand, it wouldn't be a surprise if Aura ends up being a pretty power-hungry device. Unfortunately, Xreal didn't offer any details when asked about battery life. It appears the company also dodged questions about the price and release date. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
GSM Arena
2 days ago
- Business
- GSM Arena
Snap will launch its AR glasses called Specs next year, and these will be commercially available
Snap Inc. unveiled its fifth-generation AR glasses, called Spectacles 5, last September, but they were only available to developers who signed up for the $99/month developer program. The good news is that this won't be the case with Snap's next AR glasses, which are set to launch in 2026. This revelation came from Snap during the ongoing Augmented World Expo (AWE) 2025 in Long Beach, California, in the US, where the company also announced that its next AR glasses, which will be available to the public, will be called "Specs." 'We believe the time is right for a revolution in computing that naturally integrates our digital experiences with the physical world, and we can't wait to publicly launch our new Specs next year,' said Evan Spiegel, co-founder and CEO of Snap Inc. Spectacles 5 Spiegel also claimed that Specs, which will be Snap's first commercially available AR glasses, "are the most advanced personal computer in the world." While Snap didn't delve into the details of the Specs, it said these AR glasses feature "see-through Lenses that enhance the physical world with digital experience." Furthermore, the company revealed that it has spent more than $3 billion on AR glasses over the past 11 years. In addition to revealing the launch timeframe of Specs, Snap announced updates to Snap OS, including deep integrations with OpenAI and Gemini on Google Cloud. Moreover, the company launched new tools for developers building location-based experiences. It includes the Fleet Management app, Guided Mode, and Guided Navigation. That's not it. Snap also announced that WebXR support in the browser is coming soon, and it is partnering with Niantic Spatial to bring its Visual Positioning System to Lens Studio and Specs to build an AI-powered map of the world.
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business Standard
Snap introduces next-gen 'Specs' AR Glasses, Snap OS platform: What's new
Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, has announced its next-generation consumer-focused augmented reality (AR) glasses at the Augmented World Expo (AWE) 2025. Named Specs, the new wearable device is scheduled for launch in 2026 and marks Snap's most ambitious attempt yet at integrating AR into everyday life. Alongside the hardware reveal, Snap also introduced major upgrades to its AR operating system, Snap OS. The new Specs aim to understand users' surroundings, enable shared AR experiences such as multiplayer games, and support tasks like Browse, streaming, and productivity—all through a sleek, self-contained design. Snap Specs: Details Unlike previous Snap Spectacles—which were available only to developers—the upcoming Specs will be publicly released and are designed as an 'ultra-powerful wearable computer' with see-through lenses that overlay digital content onto the real world. Snap described the new Specs as a device built to 'seamlessly integrate digital content into everyday life,' positioning the glasses as part of a broader shift in computing where physical and digital environments converge. The company said it believes 'the time is right for a revolution in computing.' Snap OS: What's new Snap is also rolling out key updates to Snap OS, the platform powering its AR glasses. These upgrades are designed to support multimodal AI, spatial awareness, and real-time content generation. Highlights include: Deep integration with OpenAI and Gemini (Google Cloud): Developers can now create multimodal, AI-powered Lenses and publish them for the Specs user base. Depth Module API: Allows Snap OS to anchor AR visuals in 3D space using translated 2D data from language models—enhancing spatial intelligence. Automated Speech Recognition API: Supports real-time transcription in over 40 languages, including non-native accents, with high accuracy. Snap3D API: Enables on-the-fly generation of 3D objects directly within Lenses. Tools for developers Snap is also introducing fleet management tools and features focused on location-based and guided experiences, designed for venues such as museums, parks, and public exhibitions: Fleet Management App: Allows institutions or developers to monitor and manage multiple Specs units remotely. Guided Mode: Lets developers pre-configure Specs to launch directly into a multiplayer or single-player Lens for instant interaction. Guided Navigation: Designed for AR-based tours, this feature provides turn-by-turn guidance through points of interest like landmarks or exhibits.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Snap to launch easy-to-wear "Specs" AR glasses for everyday users by 2026
After years of development behind the scenes, Snap is finally ready to bring its AR glasses to everyday users. Speaking at the Augmented World Expo in Long Beach, CEO Evan Spiegel announced that the company's new Specs glasses will ship to consumers in 2026. Unlike earlier Spectacles designed mainly for developers, these new Specs are built for real-world use. You can wear them on your daily commute, at home, or while doing everyday tasks like cooking or fixing things around the house. Snap has invested more than $3 billion (approximately ₹25,000 crore) in AR over the past 11 years. That long term focus has led to a design that's lighter, easier to wear, and more transparent than anything Snap has produced before. These Specs are meant to be a complete AR device. They don't need wires, phones, or external processors. They operate entirely on their own, which puts them a step ahead of many existing headsets. Snap OS is at the heart of this push. The latest version comes with AI capabilities that let users see real time translations, follow recipe steps with visual cues, and use contextual overlays. Think of being able to change a tire with on screen instructions or line up a pool shot with visual guidance. Snap is also bringing developers into the fold. Its updated spatial tools and voice input APIs will let creators build AR apps that respond to both location and natural speech. This kind of interactivity aims to make AR more useful and intuitive. What gives Snap a strong position is the ecosystem it has already built. With over 400,000 AR developers, four million Lenses, and roughly $8 billion (around ₹66,000 crore) worth of AR interactions daily, Snap has the community and content to support its hardware. Its partnership with Niantic is expected to tie AR features to real places like museums, public parks, or city walks. The glasses are equipped with waveguide lenses, stereo speakers, and a six-microphone array to deliver both spatial visuals and audio. With a 46 degree diagonal field of view, the Specs aim to offer an immersive visual experience that still feels comfortable and natural. Snap has not yet revealed pricing or the final hardware specifications. However, CEO Evan Spiegel has said the new Specs will be smaller, lighter and more advanced than earlier versions. That sounds promising, but the real test will come from how they hold up in everyday use. Battery life, comfort and ease of use will ultimately determine their success. Will these glasses genuinely make day-to-day tasks easier? Can they offer value without forcing users to adjust their routines? These are the questions Snap still needs to answer.
