// 9TO5GOOGLE — MOBILE & WEB
Hands-on: Google and Samsung’s vision for Android XR glasses is 20/20
While I acknowledge Meta’s role in bringing smart glasses to a mainstream audience, it has proven to be an irresponsible steward. Its “growth at all costs” mindset has actively poisoned people’s perception of the form factor. Under Meta’s watch, glasses have gained a creepy connotation before their utility has been fully realized.
Google’s second take on smart glasses is the exact opposite of what Meta has done. Every single aspect has been considered, and the result is worthy of being most people’s introduction to the form factor.
Officially, Android XR glasses are known as Gentle Monster and Warby Parker Intelligent Eyewear. The branding is a mouthful, and I’m not quite sure “Intelligent Eyewear” will take off. Something more colloquial, like “Google glasses” — glasses.google is the landing page — or “Samsung glasses,” will probably stick in the public consciousness.
That critique aside, the name reflects how Google wants Intelligent Eyewear to actually replace your existing glasses. Unlike the Ray-Ban trap that I frankly think Meta did not consider, Google’s offerings are not situational or activity-based devices like sunglasses. These are a “smart” upgrade to the assistive device some people have to wear.
As a wearable, smart glasses are a bit like smartwatches in that the platonic design is pretty well established and indistinguishable from traditional eyewear. Unlike watches, glasses are so visible on people’s faces that form overrides everything else.
Fortunately, the Samsung hardware I wore for an hour last week looks and feels like glasses, almost unremarkably so. I’d venture to say that audio-only glasses without a display are a solved design challenge. Google emphasized that, at 41 grams, this is the lightest pair of smart glasses on the market, and it worked to make sure the weight is distributed evenly.
The sides of the stems that face your head feature translucent plastic that lets you see the internal components. I liked that small design choice. You can control the glasses using voice commands, with Google debuting a new “Hey Gemini” hotword for the form factor. While “Hey Google” and “OK Google” remain available, the new one is meant to reflect how big a role Gemini plays on smart glasses.
There is also a touchpad on the right stem that accepts taps and swipes, while a button up top lets you take pictures and record video. Another way you’ll be able to control the glasses is with your Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch. You can play/pause audio and enable Gemini using double-pinch and wrist gestures. Notably, gesture support is also coming to the Fitbit Air next year.
From its internal testing, Google tells me that which input method people use is pretty situational and ends up being natural. At the beginning of my demo, I favored the touchpad, but by the end, I was leaning toward voice commands.
When you’re capturing media that gets saved, there will always be a white blinking indicator light. There’s also another light in your field of vision that’s analogous to the camera and microphone privacy indicators in the top-right corner of Android phones. When I first put on the glasses, that light was distracting, but I quickly forgot about it by the end of my demo.