Snap has introduced its fifth-generation Spectacles, featuring an enhanced, more immersive display, faster performance, and extended battery life. While these improvements reflect the product’s evolution over eight years, the broader market for augmented reality (AR) glasses, including Spectacles, remains in its early stages.
To accelerate adoption, Snap is focusing on developers. Unveiled during Snap’s annual Partner Summit in Los Angeles, these new Spectacles won’t be available for direct purchase. Instead, they will be offered to AR developers through a subscription model. Developers must apply via Snap’s Lens Studio platform and pay $99 per month for at least a year to access the Spectacles, totaling $1,188 over 12 months. Despite the cost, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel is confident the developer community will engage with the product, aiming to inspire new applications and experiences in AR.
“Our goal is to empower and inspire developers and AR enthusiasts,” Spiegel said. “This is an invitation to create.”
During a demonstration, the latest Spectacles showcased their hardware advancements, but the software offerings remain basic. Demonstrations included apps like a lens that grows virtual flowers and a 3D anatomical display. While the hardware has improved, Snap is relying on developers to create compelling use cases that go beyond the gimmicky experiences typical of early AR devices.
One standout feature of the new Spectacles is the improved display, boasting a 46-degree field of view and showing 37 pixels per degree—about 25% richer than the previous model. The display’s colors are more vivid, and the device now offers auto-tinting lenses to enhance visibility in sunlight. However, the narrow field of view still detracts from the overall augmented reality experience, as it limits the immersive potential.
Technological improvements include two liquid crystal and silicon-based projectors, custom Qualcomm Snapdragon processors, and infrared sensors for hand tracking. Unlike the previous generation, which struggled with overheating, the new Spectacles demonstrated improved reliability, even in outdoor conditions during a heatwave.
Snap has yet to define clear use cases for Spectacles and is instead looking to developers to explore the possibilities. “We’re trying to be the most developer-friendly platform in the world,” Spiegel stated. He added that Spectacles are not expected to become a significant revenue driver until the end of the decade. Snap has not disclosed how many units of the new Spectacles will be produced, but sources suggest around 10,000.
The AR glasses space is becoming more competitive, with major tech players like Meta, Apple, and Google also working on their own AR devices. Meta is expected to unveil its AR glasses prototype at its upcoming Connect conference, and the company has already found success with its Ray-Ban smart glasses partnership. Meanwhile, Apple and Google are developing AR products, further intensifying the race to dominate the market.
Despite the challenges and growing competition, Spiegel remains optimistic. He likens the current state of AR development to the early days of desktop computing and smartphones, emphasizing that visionary technologists are excited about the future possibilities of AR glasses.
While Snap’s Spectacles could play a key role in the next wave of computing, much work remains before the company’s vision of widespread AR adoption becomes a reality.
