CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced Orion at Wednesday’s Meta Connect event, which he called “the most highly advanced glasses you have ever seen.”
Orion offers true AR capabilities and is smaller than Snap’s newly unveiled Spectacles 5. The glasses create a heads-up display using small projectors, similar to a new updated version of Google Glass.
According to Mark Zuckerberg, the glasses have been developing for a decade, though they remain in the concept phase. During the presentation, he said, “These glasses exist; they are fantastic and a glimpse of a future that I think will be exciting.” He also mentioned that more tuning is needed before Meta is going to release them.
To its current Ray-Ban Meta livestream product, Meta is positioning Orion as a successor, describing it as:
Ray-Bans recent launch of glasses has sparked interest, in the realm of augmented reality. The industry has long envisioned glasses that seamlessly combine the advantages of a holographic display and personalized AI assistance in a comfortable. Orion rises to the challenge.”
The “neural interface” control is a standout feature, which stems from Meta’s 2019 acquisition of CTRL-labs. Due to this feature, more advanced controls will be wristband-compatible.
Meta made many claims about Orion, saying it has “the largest field of view (FOV) in the smallest AR glasses form to date.”
As stated by Meta, “The wide perspective opens up opportunities, for Orion’s applications, such as working with multiple windows, enjoying entertainment on a screen, and even projecting lifelike holograms of individuals.”
Initially, Orion will be available only to developers like the Spectacles. This is a common strategy in the industry; companies encourage the development for the platform, as they often use these early announcements to generate excitement.