Meta revealed the first prototype of its Orion AR glasses back in September. Based on the initial impressions, the wearable was quite promising for what it could do and what kind of impact it would have on the AR industry. Meta now believes that it can transform AR glasses into an actual product for the masses with applications stretching beyond avatars. Meta's chief thinks that the Orion glasses could become the AirPods of AR devices.
Meta wants its Orion AR glasses to be the AirPods of the AR industry
To better understand this statement, we first have to consider the impact of Apple's AirPods on the wearable industry and how it is stretching beyond its standard use as a replacement product for headphones. The AirPods have marked themselves as the go-to wearable for listening to music and consuming content as a whole. However, Apple is also aiming to position the AirPods as a health-focused device, and the company has recently added a hearing aid feature for the earbuds.
Meta describes the Orion as a standard pair of glasses, and while users would have their own perception of the hardware, the things it can do are quite promising, in contrast to what Apple achieved with its Vision Pro headset. Yes, the Vision Pro can do so much more, but it is priced ridiculously high, and the sheer size of the wearable is not practical for general use. Well, Meta's Orion glasses could bridge this gap, and if it does become a mainstream product like the AirPods, which it has potential for, it could shape the AR industry as a whole.
Perhaps to a short-sighted person in very foggy conditions at night, but to the rest of us, they look like exactly what they are: An early prototype of a product that takes us one step closer to that ideal.
Don’t misunderstand me. I think what Meta has shown us here is an amazing achievement. It’s quite phenomenal to squeeze this much AR tech into a form factor that is even slightly glasses-like. It’s way closer to glasses than the device shown off last year by Xiaomi. And the display is massively more Vision Pro-like than the proof-of-concept shown by Oppo.
But the gap between what we’re seeing from Meta, and anything Apple would release as a consumer product, is vast. Not to mention the small matter of a $10,000 manufacturing cost.
Meta is openly showcasing the progress of its product and how it is shaping up to be a promising wearable, compared to Apple's secretive behavior related to its unreleased products. This means that the initial wave of users would be open to trying the Orion glasses rather than waiting for Apple's rendition, which we have no proof that the device is indeed being worked on. Meta wants to position the Orion glasses as a device that you can just put on and put off, like the AirPods, rather than replacing reality. Joshua To - VP of product design at Meta, states the following to FastCo:
To doesn’t imagine Orion will be a place you are sucked into reality 2.0, but a quieter computer you can easily don and doff. “A bit how you think about AirPods.”
It remains to be seen if Apple will develop a pair of smart glasses with AR capabilities, as the current Vision Pro headset is out of reach for many users. It is only the beginning for AR devices and only the future will tell where it ends and if the industry has a dedicated spot for AR computing. Do you think Apple's rendition will be better than Meta's Orion? Let us know in the comments.
About the author: Ali Salman is a technology reporter for Wccftech mobile section with a specialized focus on Apple and the intellectual property that drives mobile innovation. He has cultivated a unique expertise in analyzing and deconstructing complex technology patents, translating dense legal and technical documents into clear, insightful reports on future products.
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