Snapchat's new full AR glasses can map 3D effects onto the world

May 22, 2021

After three versions of Snapchat Spectacles, the social media company has a new pair coming that are real AR glasses. The news was announced at Snapchat's developer-focused keynote Thursday. But while these glasses can display 3D effects onto the real world, are wireless, and have hand tracking, these new glasses are currently aimed specifically at developers and creators who want to use these to explore AR creation on headsets. No price is listed for them, and they're only available by application. Snapchat has promised it's working on a full-featured pair of augmented reality glasses for a while. It's one of many companies including Facebook, Niantic, and Qualcomm that are trying to crack the idea of everyday smart glasses. Snap's previous versions of Spectacles were focused on being mainly wearable camera-glasses. Last year's Spectacles 3 could layer glasses footage with 3D AR effects, but the AR needed to be seen and shared via a phone app; the glasses didn't have their own displays. The glasses promise 2,000 nits of brightness, have a 26.3-inch diagonal field of view and dual waveguide displays. They have a touchpad control on the side, and look like thick sunglasses. They use a "Snap Spatial Engine" and have hand-tracking, can track the world with six degrees of freedom, and weigh 134 grams (4.7 ounces), according to Snapchat. Another interesting feature: They're wireless, something other AR glasses this size haven't achieved yet. But there are tradeoffs, too. The glasses only last for 30 minutes on a charge, according to Snapchat's specs, and have a limited 480x564-pixel resolution for each eye. The glasses have their own charging case (and it sounds like you'll need it).