Qualcomm Announces Samsung’s New Mixed-Reality Smart Glasses

Last year, Samsung made headlines with an XR project unveiled during the launch of the Galaxy S23 series, in partnership with tech giants Google and Qualcomm. Since that announcement, details about the anticipated XR device have been scarce.

Many industry experts initially speculated that Samsung’s XR device would be an Extended Reality (XR) headset designed to compete with the Apple Vision Pro. There was even a leaked prototype of an XR headset, fueling expectations about Samsung’s direction. However, recent insights indicate that the forthcoming XR innovation from Samsung is actually a pair of smart glasses.

In a recent interview with CNBC, Qualcomm’s CEO Cristiano Amon disclosed that Samsung’s XR offering is indeed mixed reality smart glasses. He highlighted that these glasses would connect seamlessly to a smartphone, branding them as a “new product.”Amon elaborated:

What I really expect to come out of this partnership is that I want everyone that has a phone to purchase companion glasses to go along with it. I envision a future where these glasses are as commonplace as regular glasses or sunglasses. Achieving this will help us reach a scaling point.

It is anticipated that the upcoming Samsung XR smart glasses will be powered by a Qualcomm chipset, alongside a new Android version specifically tailored for XR, VR, and AR experiences, thanks to Google’s collaboration with Samsung.

Furthermore, the smart glasses are expected to come with AI capabilities supported by the cloud. Amon stated, “AI is going to run on the device. It’s going to run on the cloud.”He emphasized his vision of these smart glasses serving as essential companions for users’ smartphones.

Presently, questions linger regarding the appearance and specifications of these innovative smart glasses. Recently, a Samsung VR headset appeared on Geekbench, showcasing the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset, along with 16GB of RAM. However, it remains unclear if this is the same device referenced by Qualcomm’s CEO or if it belongs to a separate project that Samsung is also developing.

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