Leaked renders of Samsung's first smart glasses show a display-free frame around 50 grams, a 12MP Sony camera, and the same Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 chip Meta has been using since the Ray-Ban Meta launched in 2023. The codename is Jinju. Android XR runs the software, Gemini handles the AI, and the price lands between $379 and $499, exactly inside Meta's bracket.
Samsung looked at the category Meta spent two years validating and built the same product. Same chip, same weight, same camera resolution, same price. The only meaningful difference is the AI. Meta's on one side, Google's on the other.
The display-free smart glasses problem is solved. It looks like regular glasses with cameras in the temples and costs about as much as a mid-range phone. Samsung did not find a better answer than Meta. It found the same one.
A second Samsung model, codenamed Haean and targeting 2027 with a micro-LED display at $600 to $900, is the harder problem. Display tech in a frame light enough to wear all day, with battery life that lasts more than a few hours, has not been figured out by anyone.
The frames are not the product anymore. The AI inside them is. Meta has Llama. Samsung has Gemini through Google. Whoever you trust to listen to your conversations and watch your world all day is now one of the most important questions you will ask before buying a wearable.