Apple to go toe-to-toe with Meta – smart glasses expected

The world of technology can be fickle at times. While many of us will have watched in awe as our phones moved from landline, to mobile, to miniaturised computer in the pocket, not every new gadget has the same luck.

Take the world of VR headsets. While the device have been around for years at this point, they've not exactly caught on like some thought they would. The core client base seems to be gamers, with few other use cases talked about.

Still, if any brand could take the technology which was already under people's noses, tweak the delivery and convince the world it couldn't live without it, it's Apple. That's exactly what happened with the Apple Vision Pro, which was framed as a spatial computer rather than a VR headset.

Now, it looks like the brand is taking steps to streamline that form factor. That's after news of smart glasses emerged overnight. Those reports come from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who is widely credited with having one of the best inside tracks for Apple information.

So, just what might the Apple smart glasses offer? Well, not as much as the Vision Pro, that's for sure. While it would be impressive, these are said to be more akin to the Meta Ray Ban smart glasses – regular old specs, with cameras built into the frames.

It's a shame that we couldn't get something more like the recently teased Meta Orion. Those blew the competition out of the water, showcasing a pair of holographic spectacles which allow the user to view the real world and projected imagery at the same time.

To me – and many other tech fans – that feels like the form factor we've been waiting for. VR headsets are cool, and even the Apple Vision Pro is an impressive specimen, but mass adoption is likely to be scant until the form factor looks more socially acceptable.

So, when is all of this coming to market? Well, not any time soon. Gurman reports that the technology could be here by 2027, which is still some way off. He also notes that the AirPods with cameras concept we've heard about could be launched in this window. For now, then, we'll just have to wait patiently for more details.