And given that to most of us, our daily routines don't include a hefty amount of VR gaming, I’m talking about the Vision Pro. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to see a similar concept from Meta too, given the company’s expertise in the XR industry.
And Meta’s CTO — Andrew “Boz” Bosworth — obliged several times now, confirming that a pair of astoundingly-awesome AR glasses exist at Meta HQ. But he was also adamant that we won’t see them anytime soon, which only made me want to ask Andy why he had told us in the first place.But you know what? A new report suggests that we may actually get to see them this year.
This is what smart glasses were all about in 2023 and I’m already ready for us to move on.
So, in case you haven’t caught up with recent events, Andrew Bosworth has a habit of doing AMA (ask me anything) sessions over on Instagram. Thus far, he has brought up a pair of smart Meta-made AR glasses several times, but he called them “the most advanced thing that we’ve ever produced as a species” just once.
Which, if you’re like me, kind of gets you amped up to see them.
And this new report then talks about a conceptual AR glasses prototype called “Orion”. More specifically: about how we may get to see Orion — even at its current, unfinished state, which is something that Meta is historically totally okay with doing — during Meta’s Connect event for 2024.
Oh, and for the record, that’s when Zuck kicks off a huge, multi-day online event about all things Meta, with a huge focus on AR/VR.
Okay then, the obvious question: could Orion be the amazing pair of AR glasses that Boz mentioned numerous times on Instagram? Or could it be another iteration of Nazare — an earlier AR prototype?
A recording from a stream, on which Zuckerberg talked about project Nazare.
Well, yesn’t. By which I mean that we won’t know until we see the thing, if that happens at all. For all we know, Nazare could have evolved to become Orion and Orion could be the precursor to whatever Bosworth was talking about during the livestreams.
An interesting part of the report specifies that Orion is meant to be a "true pair of AR glasses" and not a HUD-based system, such as Google Glass (RIP). And I find that mention fascinating, because a modern pair of AR glasses should be able to do both, but with spatial computing thrown in the mix, right?
This is what I mean: if I'm wearing AR glasses, I'd want them to be able to act as my real-life HUD, guiding me on my path, displaying a shopping list while I'm at the store and even giving me weather updates. But then, it should be able to switch modes for more spatial stuff, like making a virtual workspace. Or playing next-gen Pokémon Go, which I'm hoping for.
With some luck, we’ll find out what all of this means when Meta Connect 2024 happens. Historically, the event takes place during fall, around September or Spooctober, so we have quite a lot of ground to cover before then. Maybe we’ll hear more about Orion before then.
View Full BioStan, also known as Stako, is a smartphone enthusiast who loves exploring the limits of Android customization. His journey with mobile tech began with the Nokia 5110 and evolved with devices like the BlackBerry 9350 Curve and Samsung Galaxy A4. Despite his love for Android, he holds equal respect for Apple, considering the iPhone 4s as a significant milestone in mobile tech. Stan started his writing career early, contributing to MetalWorld, and harbors a passion for creative writing. Beyond smartphones, he's interested in photography, design, composition, and gaming, often preferring solo projects to hone his objective thinking. He's also an avid student of open-source technology and consoles, with a special fondness for the Pebble Watch, Arduboy, and Playdate.
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