The AR space is about to get a significant shift as Meta and Snap readies their new AR glasses. These two tech conglomerates, which have played a great role in the field of social networks and virtual reality, are going to fight for the leadership in the development of the new generation consumer technologies. First, let’s try to figure out what can we expect from the future announcements and how they can impact the AR evolution. 

The Current AR Landscape 

Standalone or Augmented Reality as a technology has been gradually emerging, with the global market for AR expected to be worth $97. Market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 48% to $76 billion by 2028. This is projected to rise at a CAGR of 6% during the forecast period between 2021 and 2028 . AR is growing fast due to the growing use in different sectors such as gaming, healthcare, and retail. However, AR glasses targeted at consumers have not become popular in the market today because of certain hindrances in technology and high costs.  

Meta and Snap have both tried to shift these discourses. Given the large number of their users and the funds they have at their disposal, they are in a good place to popularize AR glasses. Each of the two has provided some indication that its future products will be much better than those currently available, which could mean that AR glasses will become more affordable and practical for the average person to own. 

What to Expect from Meta  

The maker of Facebook, Meta has been spending much of its resources on the development of AR and VR technologies for a long time now. The company’s AR glasses are expected to be part of its metaverse plans to build a series of interconnected virtual environments to live, work and play in. 

The first rumours indicate that Meta’s AR glasses will be equipped with advanced hand tracking, voice commands, and high-resolution screens. These glasses are expected to connect with other Meta’s social media networks through which the users will be in a position to share their AR experiences. Also, there are speculations that Meta is developing applications that are specifically for AR and these could include gaming and entertainment apps as well as productivity apps. 

It is one of the significant problems of Meta since on one hand, they want to offer more features, but on the other hand, it has to be wearable. Previous attempts of AR glasses have been on the large and uncomfortable side which might not be very encouraging to the public. Nonetheless, given Meta’s experience in hardware design illustrated by the Oculus series, they might have come up with a way of making AR glasses comfortable to wear. 

What to Expect from Snap 

Snap, the company that developed snapchat, has been an innovator of AR technology for a long time. Through its AR filters and lenses, Snap has made millions of people experience what AR entails in their day to day life. Now, the company is trying to build on that experience and release its own AR glasses. 

Snap’s new AR glasses are expected to follow the footsteps of Spectacles line that was first introduced in 2016. This next version of Spectacles is said to be a iterations which was mostly concerned with the recording of videos. This could encompass things such as real time annotations, AR content which users can engage with and possibly even AR-based social networking. 

The company has always focused on the creative aspect of AR and people’s ability to express themselves through the platform, and this philosophy will most probably be carried on with the new glasses. It has suggested that it will team up with musicians and manufacturers to develop special ‘moments’ that can be viewed through the glasses, which may well make the glasses more attractive to children and teenagers. 

Snap will also have to contend with the technological issues that have hobbled prior AR glasses. All these are important features that can make or break the success of the product as far as the battery life, processing power and display are concerned. 

The Road Ahead 

Meta’s and Snap’s upcoming launches will most probably lay the foundation for the future of AR. If they are to succeed, these AR glasses might revolutionize the means of human-computer interaction and make the real and virtual world interweave. For business, this could create new ways of advertising, interacting with customers, and potentially even new methods of operating remotely. To the consumers, AR glasses can be the next fashion trend so people will be wearing them like they wear glasses. 

But the process of making blockchain mainstream will not be all that smooth. Meta and Snap have to deal with a number of technical and market barriers. Cost is going to be a big issue, because the AR glasses are not expected to sell unless they are priced low enough for the masses. Similarly, both the companies will also have to pay a close attention to the fact that the glasses that they design should not cause discomfort while worn for long periods of time.  

As we await the official reveals, one thing is certain: Here’s some good news for anyone interested in the AR glasses market: things are about to get interesting. If you are an tech freak or own a business or you simply want to know what’s coming next, then the forth coming product from Meta and Snap are something to look forward to.