Apple Inc. sees a future in digital glases

Apple is said to be considering an expansion of its wearable portfolio with the inclusion of AR glass headsets, with the tech giant reportedly already in talks with potential suppliers.

Apple glasses sound a lot like Google Glass, the head-mounted display that Google first introduced in 2013. These set of glasses will be using (AI) to understand voice commands of users.

“We are high on AR for the long run”, said Apple CEO Tim Cook during an earnings call in July, shortly after Pokemon Go exploded into a worldwide phenomenon.

Apple hasn’t made any official announcements about these digital glasses, and it’s possible that this product will be killed off and never see any kind of public reveal.

Just don’t expect the device to show up next year – the earliest you can expect it is perhaps 2018 and Apple has a reputation of experimenting in private, testing new products but ultimately deciding not to bring them to market. In October, Cook is quoted as saying: “I can’t imagine everyone in here getting in an enclosed VR experience while you’re sitting in here with me, but I could imagine everyone in here in an AR experience right now”.

Sources also mention that Apple have partnered with “smart optics” company Zeiss to provide the product with lenses.

Apple has been speaking to several suppliers regarding the glasses project and has even ordered a near-eye display from a supplier. These glasses may be some type of Apple-edition Google Glass with finalizations and features that’ll patch up all the flaws and caveats of Glass and other smart glasses that have attempted to make it on the market. At best, they wouldn’t be available to buy until 2018, and that’s if it even chose to go ahead with the idea.

The news follows Snapchat’s Spectacles sunglasses going on sale over the weekend for a limited number of customers in the US.

Cook reiterates that the company will go further in augmented reality, following the rise of location-based game Pokemon Go, which uses AR.

The move comes as Apple looks for a way to maintain growth despite increasing pressure on its traditional engine, the iPhone.