Phones, tablets, and smartwatches aren’t really seeing much innovation these days, as the product categories have been out for some time now, and are pretty much refined to a point where not much more can be done. With that said, brands like Google are starting to branch out into new spaces, in an attempt to deliver new products that could end up becoming mainstream in the next couple of years.
A new generation of wearables
Google has slowly been sharing what it has planned for the near future, but today, it offered a small glimpse of what’s to come, highlighting new Android XR products that will be available in 2026. While Samsung’s Galaxy XR headset made a huge splash, it isn’t a product that most people are going to gravitate towards due to its high price tag.
Instead, the big bet comes in the form of smart glasses, offering something familiar yet different. Meta has been in this space for some years now, and even offers some alluring options with its collaboration with Ray-Ban. Google will also attempt to bring its own devices to market next year, partnering with notable eyewear brands like Warby Parker and Gentle Monster.
Stylish yet powerful
While Google doesn’t provide all the details about these new products, it does share that its new smart glasses will have built-in cameras, microphones, and speakers. It will also have a display, and will let users communicate with Gemini.
Again, this is something that Meta has been working on for some time, and even has a couple of generations of products out already. So, we can expect Google to offer something similar, which could be interesting.
The biggest hurdle with these products is offering something that can look and feel like a real pair of glasses. Because if they become too big, they just don’t look right and more importantly, they aren’t comfortable to wear all day.
Project Aura is finally coming
We’ve seen XR glasses hit the market over the past few years, and have even reviewed some as well. So it doesn’t come as a complete surprise that at least one brand, XREAL, will be partnering with Google for its next generation of products.
We’ve been hearing about Project Aura for some time now, but it’s good to get more details ahead of its eventual release. XREAL’s Project Aura will be a wired pair of glasses that will mix digital and real-world content with the power of Android XR.
We anticipate the experience to be similar to past products. However, the glasses will now be running on Android XR, rather than XREAL’s own proprietary platform. From what we can see so far, the software appears to provide a huge boost to the experience.
Samsung Galaxy XR gets a boost
Samsung’s Galaxy XR headset running Android XR made its debut just a couple of months ago, but many won’t be running out to purchase it, making it a showcase to show off what’s possible with the new software.
Google is now offering updates to the headset, allowing users to connect to a Windows PC. It will combine the best of both worlds, with apps from Windows and Android, in the same environment.
In addition, a new travel mode was announced, along with new digital avatars when communicating via the headset. Again, this is all just the first few steps with Android XR so it will be interesting to see just how far Google can take this.
