At Google I/O, we got more hands-on time with Android XR, though in the form of more compact, wearable glasses. Companies such as Xreal and Samsung are aiming to bring Android smart glasses to the masses later this year with more portable models that can be worn anywhere, unlike the rather massive Galaxy XR headset. More importantly, Google is leaning on Samsung to bring its vision of “intelligent eyewear” to consumers with stylish offerings.
We’re still some months away from an official launch, but Samsung’s announcement reinvigorated excitement for Android XR after a year of waiting for a proper competitor to Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses. However, Samsung and, more importantly, Google, will have to learn from past mistakes to truly get Android XR off the ground and avoid another “Glassholes” situation.
Understanding smart glasses
(Image credit: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
The smart glasses market is still somewhat in its infancy, and it has only recently begun to pop off. Right now, Meta absolutely dominates the market, doing a great job establishing the glasses as a media device with AI features, as opposed to the other way around. In fact, it wasn’t until later that the company really leaned into AI, adding multimodal capabilities that let Meta AI “see” what you’re seeing so you can make sense of it.
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But now that AI and even displays are becoming part of the picture, consumers are starting to wonder what the endgame is. And in a world where smartphones are everywhere, the purpose of smart glasses isn’t clear to everyone, especially when consumers aren’t even fully convinced that smart watches are necessary.
(Image credit: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)
I spoke with Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC’s worldwide device tracker, who told me in an interview that while the long-term goal for smart glasses (or intelligent eyewear, as Samsung likes to call it) is to eventually replace our smartphones, though it’s “not happening anytime soon,” even as AI models like Gemini become more capable.
However, in the short term, smart glasses are positioned as smartphone companion devices, and companies have to make their use cases simple and appealing for consumers.
According to Ubrani, “the selling point or the more immediate selling point for a lot of these smart classes today is really audio-video first and AI second. And so that’s a very clear and easy use case to sell to consumers.”
(Image credit: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
Let’s face it, we live in a content-driven world, and Meta is leaning into its ownership of Instagram to help draw consumers in.
“It’s great for content creators,” Ubrani tells me. “And it offers value in the sense that it’s reducing friction that consumers would otherwise have or face if they didn’t use these glasses. It’s a lot easier for me to take a picture with my glasses than pull my phone out of my pocket, open the camera app, and take a picture. Same thing with translation and playing music.”
I myself am pretty new to the current iteration of camera-touting AI glasses, but I have recently found myself taking the Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 to concerts and other social events. I like that it saves me from being another smartphone hovering above the crowd and lets me easily capture images and videos with little effort.
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I am also planning to run my first 5K later this year, and I already know the Ray-Ban Metas will be on my face to document much of the experience.
(Image credit: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
This is the kind of experience Google and Samsung need to lean on with their upcoming smart glasses. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t wait to have Gemini on my face, frankly, because I’m more invested in Google’s ecosystem than Meta’s. However, perceptions of AI remain mixed at best, and not everyone will be as excited about their glasses being able to tell them what’s in front of them or order an Uber.
That’s why it makes sense for Google and Samsung to focus less on AI, while obviously not ignoring it. Draw consumers in with stylish eyewear and a great camera to capture images and video they can immediately post to their socials. Then remind them about the extra benefits that come with having Gemini or even a display on their face, such as real-time translation and Nano Banana editing features.
And for some, this is already a benefit that Google and Samsung will have over Meta, especially given how Android XR will be deeply integrated with their smartphones.
“From the device maker’s perspective — from Google’s perspective — it’s about creating stickiness,” Ubrani notes. “You stay within their ecosystem. You use their products and services more. And they’re able to, in turn, learn from that and create more stickiness further down the line.”
Fashion and Gen Z are the key
(Image credit: Meta)
If Samsung and Google want Android XR to take off, they will have to do more than just partner with companies like Gentle Monster and Warby Parker. This is a great start, following Meta’s strategy to get more smart glasses in consumer hands by bringing the tech to stylish, everyday eyewear. And from the looks of it, Samsung’s glasses may be something the average consumer would want to put on their face.
The next step is to get the marketing right by appealing to Gen Z and fashion types. Ubrani highlights how this has worked for Meta, noting how the company had a mix of “fashion influencers and fashion blog writers” at Meta Connect alongside analysts, journalists, and developers.
(Image credit: Motorola)
It’s a strategy I’ve noticed lately with more tech companies. Motorola has leaned heavily on Gen Z as its target audience for the Razr series, while also partnering with fashion icons like Paris Hilton. This strategy has helped the company achieve new heights with its Razr series, now with half of the U.S. foldable market, a far cry from just a few years ago, when it was clawing its way back to relevance.
“We need to see Google do some of the same,” Ubrani tells me. “It can’t just rely on Samsung or Warby Parker and Gentle Monster. It has to invest on its own, going after a very mainstream audience that may not necessarily pay attention to tech.”
(Image credit: Google, Samsung)
That’s not to say Google needs to create a pair of first-party smart glasses. While Google is surely capable of making its own “Pixel Glasses” or the like, Ubrani thinks it’s way too early for Google, as the company isn’t exactly known as a fashionable brand.
I will say that the Pixel smartphone lineup is slowly changing the perception of Google’s products (they’ve never looked better). Still, the search giant doesn’t have the market share Samsung does, and that’s a clear reason the companies are working so closely together on Android XR, just as they did with Wear OS. It would be nice to see other companies like Motorola in the mix, but Google is putting its best foot forward to get things off the ground, which I think should help it in the long run.
Other challenges
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
With Samsung at the helm and Google’s backing, Android XR is clearly poised to challenge Meta’s dominance or even stave off an eventual Apple entry… right? Ubrani isn’t fully convinced.
“It’s not to say that they’re not capable, it’s just that Meta’s partnership with EssilorLuxottica is huge, right? Because EssilorLuxottica is the largest glasses maker in the world. They have a huge amount of distribution [Meta is] leveraging to sell these glasses. Then on Meta’s side, Meta has this marketing and ad business that’s huge and rivals Google’s in many ways, and they’re also leveraging that.”
It also helps that Meta has been willing to lose money on its Reality Labs division to sell its glasses. This heavy subsidizing has paid off, helping get more glasses on more faces, despite lacking the same ecosystem lock-in that Google will clearly benefit from. But even so, Ubrani thinks Samsung and Google need to be willing to do the same if Android XR is to be successful, especially since their partners don’t have the same level of distribution as Meta and EssilorLuxottica.
“But you know, Samsung has scale, Google has scale, and so potentially they can get there. I just don’t know if they’re quite there yet, and it’s a little too early to kind of make the call as to if they will get there.”
The pieces are falling into place
(Image credit: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
When Google Glass launched in 2012, it was doomed to fail for many reasons. Aside from being too ahead of its time, the device just didn’t have any consumer appeal. Sameer Samat, President of the Android Ecosystem at Google, said as much while speaking to the media at Google I/O this week.
“The most important thing I learned is that fashion comes first, technology comes second.”
It sounds as if Google is well aware of the steps it needs to take to ensure Android XR is successful and doesn’t repeat the same mistakes it did in the past. And by leaning on Samsung, Google can potentially avoid any direct comparisons to Google Glass.
(Image credit: Samsung)
It also helps that consumer perception has changed from the days of Google Glass. With the prevalence of social media and the omnipresence of smartphone cameras, consumers are more accepting of camera-laden eyewear, even if there’s still some hesitation.
“We’ve certainly come a long way from glassholes where these things are more welcome, and in some cases, you also know people genuinely want cameras on their faces,” Ubrani says.
“It’s not to say that the work’s done, like I think there are still some social taboos, and we need to change some of these social norms… but we’re certainly more accepting of the technology today than we were 10 years ago.”
