Did Meta Manage To Get It Right With These New Orion Glasses?

Perhaps Google Glass was just ahead of its time. These days, it seems as if every tech company is announcing plans to introduce augmented reality glasses.

But only time will tell which of these gadgets will become a hit with consumers.

Meta swings for the fences

Despite security concerns surrounding Facebook and Instagram, the Metaverse debacle, and the uninspiring launch of Threads last year, Meta is still a dominant Big Tech force. And the company introduced the world to one of its most attention-grabbing products in recent memory during an annual conference this week.

A few tech industry insiders were able to get their hands on a pair of Orion AR glasses and many of them reported a positive first impression. Some of the highlights included:

• A smaller, lighter design than most competitors
• A more natural integration of digital imagery
• A range of entertaining or informative capabilities

Many of its features were on display during the recent conference, but CNBC’s Julia Boorstin was among those allowed to try them out herself and was captivated by one aspect.

“What was really striking to me about these was that they were incredibly lightweight,” she said.

But what can they do?

Introducing a shiny new product is good for generating media coverage, but is Orion really all it’s cracked up to be? Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg led attendees through a series of demonstrations, during which the glasses were able to identify ingredients, present three-dimensional games, and much more.

Displayed items can be selected or moved with simple hand movements detected by a wristband.

Even those who might be skeptical about Meta and its venture into AR glasses might be impressed by what has been displayed thus far. For Zuckerberg, Orion offers “a glimpse of a future that I think is going to be pretty exciting.”

Chris Agee September 28th, 2024

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