Apple’s long-rumored AR smart glasses remain a work in progress, with no release on the horizon. While the company has introduced the Apple Vision Pro, a headset that shares some features with AR glasses, its bulky form factor highlights the challenges of creating a sleeker, consumer-friendly design. Despite growing interest in augmented reality, Apple appears to be cautious, prioritizing getting the technology right over rushing a product to market.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports that Apple is likely still 3-5 years away from perfecting its approach to AR glasses. This cautious timeline reflects the complexities of the task, which include miniaturizing computing components, achieving a fashionable and functional design, ensuring adequate battery life, and delivering high-resolution displays that maintain an excellent media experience. Apple is committed to refining these elements before launching a viable product.
Current AR glasses prototypes from other companies illustrate the challenges of creating a consumer-ready device. Meta and Snapchat, for instance, have showcased AR glasses with impressive capabilities, but neither company has introduced a product for the mass market. Snapchat’s glasses are limited to developers, and Meta’s prototypes serve as demonstrations rather than fully-fledged products, likely due to prohibitive costs and technical limitations.
The author of the report recently tried Snapchat’s AR glasses and found them to be impressive but imperfect. Issues such as limited field-of-view and bulkiness suggest that the technology is not yet ready for mainstream adoption. These shortcomings underscore why Apple, known for its high design standards and user-friendly products, is unwilling to compromise by releasing a subpar device.
While Apple’s measured approach makes sense, it may still feel disappointing to those eager for innovative AR solutions. The company’s focus on delivering a polished and functional product is aligned with its history of market-defining releases, but it also means that consumers will have to wait several more years to experience Apple’s vision for AR glasses.
