The conceptual video leaked with two AR devices from Samsung surfaced. While these are just concepts and products that don’t work as such, it is clear that the Korean tech giant is gearing up to compete with companies like Facebook and Apple as they increasingly approach the launch of consumer AR headsets.
Known leak ‘WalkingCat‘released two videos showing a couple of separate device concepts. WalkingCat was also involved in leaking photos of the Oculus Quest 2 prior to its launch and Lenovo’s latest ThinkReality AR glasses for businesses before it was announced at CES this year.
This first device appears to be smartglasses for casual media consumption, dubbed ‘Samsung Glasses Lite’. The video (seen below) shows what we would expect from a pair of smartglasses tracked in 3DOF, that is, the ability to view traditional flatsceen media through a virtual monitor.
An interesting idea outside the norm, however, is their ability to use active shading in a way that can not only compensate for high ambient lighting, but also co-opt this function to use them as ‘dumb’ sunglasses. This could mean that the company wants to make them devices for use all day.
The second device envisions a much more engaging set of features. Simply called ‘Samsung AR Glasses’, it appears to launch the 6DOF-tracked headset for work applications such as 3D product design and collaborative in-person ‘holo calls’.
It is important to note that these devices, as we see them in the videos, are most likely just ideas on paper right now.
The ‘Samsung AR glasses’ do not appear to include any optical tracking, and the glasses themselves appear to be simple plastic frames with no noticeable screen, be it a waveguide or a bird bath (waveguides can be seen in the Lite glasses, but they are not talking much). Despite the robust plastic structure, both are considerably small as well.
If Samsung’s AR glasses existed as we see them in the video above, that would mean a truly magical leap in mobile processing. Being able to fit all the computing power, batteries and display technology needed in such a small package is a dream, but currently it is not the reality.
So while we may not see these types of Samsung devices for a while, it is an interesting look at the state of the industry. Both Facebook and Apple are silent about their respective AR products, but you expect Samsung to know more about what its competitors are doing than the general public. The split between smart glasses as a ‘Lite’ option and AR glasses as a workforce multiplier is an interesting choice that may be Big Tech’s first bet on AR for the consumer; that is, they offer lower priced smart glasses with software integration and higher priced AR glasses for businesses and consumers.