According to a new report from Mark Gurman, Apple has canceled the development of a pair of augmented reality glasses. They were supposed to work in conjunction with a Mac, not standalone like the Vision Pro headset.
The company allegedly closed the project last week. The device was supposed to look like regular glasses, but with built-in projectors that would display information, images, and videos in the field of view of each eye.
Apple was reportedly working on integrating lenses that would change their tint depending on what the user is doing – something like setting up a status in a chat app. The project was apparently seen as a step forward for Apple after the weak sales of Vision Pro.
These glasses were supposed to be something that, unlike Vision Pro, «could be acceptable to everyday users». And yet, finding the right technology to create them and «at an affordable price» proved to be too difficult.
Initially, Apple wanted its glasses to be able to pair with the iPhone, but the smartphone did not provide them with enough computing power. It also quickly drained the iPhone’s battery. That’s when the switch to pairing with Macs took place. However, the Mac-connected product «reportedly performed poorly during management reviews, and the desired features kept changing». In the end, the company decided to simply abandon the idea.
Thus, Meta can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Apple won’t be competing with its smart glasses anytime soon. Meta currently has smart glasses created in collaboration with Ray-Ban, which have already sold over a million units. The company is also working on an AR version, which is scheduled to launch in 2027. That is when Apple was supposed to release its already canceled glasses, so it would be a very interesting year for consumer AR equipment.
Source: gsmarena