Meta plans to unveil new smart glasses with a built-in display at its Connect conference next month.

The device, codenamed Hypernova, is expected to feature a small digital display in the right lens and cost around US$800.

Meta will launch the glasses in partnership with EssilorLuxottica, the eyewear company behind Ray-Ban and other brands.

Sources said the company will also debut a wristband that lets users control the glasses with hand gestures, using neural technology developed by Meta’s CTRL Labs.

The wristband reads electrical signals from the wearer’s hand and is designed to improve future AR devices.

The Hypernova glasses will reportedly allow users to take photos and videos, make calls, send messages, listen to audio, and interact with an AI assistant.

Meta also plans to announce a third generation of its voice-only smart glasses with Luxottica at the event.

Meta declined to comment.

🔗 Source: CNBC

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Meta’s methodical approach reflects the complex realities of AR development

Meta’s timeline for bringing AR glasses to consumers aligns well with Mark Zuckerberg’s 2017 prediction that the technology would take five to seven years to develop2.

The company confirmed active development of AR glasses in 2018, and now in 2024 is launching its first consumer display version, hitting almost exactly the middle of that projected timeline2.

Rather than rushing to market with full AR capabilities, Meta is taking an incremental approach with significant technical limitations.

The Hypernova glasses feature only a monocular display with a 20-degree field of view, designed primarily for simple notifications rather than immersive AR experiences1.

This conservative approach contrasts with Meta’s experimental Orion prototype, which demonstrated full binocular AR capabilities but remains years from consumer release.

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