Google and Samsung's next face computers have arrived. Nearly two years after the companies first announced the Android XR platform that powers the hardware, the smart glasses are finally on sale.
The “Intelligent Eyewear” is a collaboration between the two tech companies, with Samsung providing its hardware expertise and Google handling much of the software platform. Smart glasses are just one part of Android XR—there are also mixed-reality headsets and glasses for more immersive experiences, like last year's Samsung Galaxy XR and the upcoming Xreal Aura.
Eyewear brands Warby Parker and Gentle Monster are heavily involved in the new smart glasses, responsible for the design and fit, similar to how Meta tapped Ray-Ban for its competing—and market-leading—wearables. Google and Samsung are leveraging Warby Parker and Gentle Monster's brick-and-mortar presence and retail expertise, which lets people demo the glasses before buying them. (Kering Eyewear, which owns brands like Lindberg and Maui Jim, has also signed up to make glasses for Android XR in the future.)
The first models are available for preorder now, with official sales starting on December 10. Warby Parker's frames start at $395 and come in three styles—Alden, Reid, and Wren—as optical or sunglasses, with various prescription, lens, and width options. Gentle Monster's glasses start at $449 and come in six designs, various colors, and tints, with prescription options for most frames.
The hardware is identical across both brands. The glasses weigh around 41 grams (10 grams less than Meta's new Gen 3 glasses ), have a nine-hour battery life, and include a charging case that can recharge the glasses up to seven times.
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