Smart glasses are having a moment. Meta's latest Ray-Ban specs are available now, its newest Oakleys are coming soon and Google and Samsung will probably jump into the tech race for your face next year with Android XR. With all that momentum, it always felt inevitable to me that Apple would introduce its own smart glasses sooner or later -- and recent signs point to sooner.
Reports claim that Apple has paused its rumored Vision Air hardware -- the smaller, lighter successor to its existing Vision Pro VR headset -- in favor of smart glasses. To me, that sounds like a pivot to compete with the wave of AI-powered glasses that everyone from Meta and Samsung to Google, Snap, Amazon, Xreal, Rokid and even OpenAI are either selling, developing or rumored to be exploring.
Apple doesn't have Ray-Ban-style smart glasses yet, but the Vision Pro has already begun exploring the XR frontiers on our face. Scott Stein/CNET
As I test various smart glasses this fall, I see the pieces coming together for Apple. It already has the product catalog and wearable technology in place to make a splash, and it's much further along than you might realize. Here's how Apple's current headphones, watches, phones and software could shape its first pair of smart glasses.
Audio tech via AirPods
Apple's been working on tech for our faces for over a decade. When I wore the first AirPods back in 2016 and got mocked for how weird they looked, it felt like Apple testing a design flex for our faces. It succeeded: Today, everyone wears AirPods and other wireless buds -- and don't get mocked for it.
A long time ago, having these in my ears was surprising. Look where we are now. Scott Stein/CNET
Since then, Apple's been unleashing computational audio features that could fit perfectly into smart glasses. Think live translation in the latest AirPods firmware, head-nodding gestures for quick replies, heart rate tracking, ambient noise filtering to sharpen focus or assist with hearing loss and spatial 3D audio. There's also the new open-ear noise cancellation tech on AirPods 4, plus FDA-cleared hearing assistance -- a feature already popping up in the smart glasses from companies like Nuance.
These technologies could all apply to smart AR glasses, which have tiny open-air speakers built into the frames for audio. AirPods could be just the beginning.
My wrists last week: On my right, a Neural Band to control Meta Ray-Ban Displays. On the left, an Apple Watch that already has a few gestures onboard, but no glasses to control them yet. Scott Stein/CNET
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