Meta recently announced their Orion glasses as “the most advanced augmented reality (AR) glasses ever made.” With this new wearable gadget, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram aims to create a seamless bridge between the virtual and physical worlds through unmatched holographic displays and an AI-powered virtual assistant.
In recent years, Meta has invested a lot of effort in the development of XR (extended reality) devices such as the Quest virtual reality headset, which is now widely available. But instead of blocking out the physical realm, the company's new AR concept superimposes digital interfaces around using highly advanced lenses. According to Meta, these specs offer “the widest field of view in the smallest AR glasses form to date.”
Orion's miniaturized technology has been developed over several years of experimentation and innovation. Meta collaborated with eyewear brand Ray-Ban to package the device in a sleek and wearable frame. Currently, the market is ready for immersive wearable tech, so Meta and its competitors are rushing to define the space with new devices, like Apple's bulkier Vision Pro headset.
The company also shared that the assistive Meta AI features will play an important role in the user experience by offering 3D visualizations, object recognition abilities, and conversational AI interactions that people are already familiar with in chatbots like ChatGPT.
The Orion glasses are still in the prototype stage, so they won't be available to customers for a few years. In the meantime, Meta will continue to fine-tune the product with feedback and input from Meta employees and limited external groups.
