Putting cameras in earbuds serves as an interesting stopgap or alternative to smart glasses, with Apple, Meta, and Samsung rumored to be working on this form factor.
Apple’s work on this form factor has been rumored since last year and a new report from Bloomberg describes similar efforts from both Meta and Samsung.
The Meta effort would “let users look at an object and ask the earbuds to analyze the item.” However, form factor issues for these so-called “Camera Buds” have emerged, including poor angles for lenses and visibility problems for those with long hair. This is still in the prototype phase and might be canceled before launch.
Bloomberg also shared that Samsung is “considering a version with cameras.” There are no other details today.
Today’s report is more broadly about Meta’s hardware efforts. The Luxottica Group, which Google tried to get as a partner, that Meta works with owns Ray-Bans, Oakley, Persol, LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut, and many more brands in the space.
Meta plans to put a camera at the center of Oakley Sphaera-style frames. This “Supernova 2” model is meant for athletes, like cyclists, and coming in 2025.
Also due this year are “Hypernova” smart glasses in the Ray-Ban style that have a “display on the bottom portion of the right lens that projects information into a user’s field of view.” It might show notifications, photos taken by the device, and run simple apps, with a $1,000 price tag expected.
There might also be a wristband-style controller as an alternative to the touch surface on the temple. Meta is also resuming work on a smartwatch that might be released as soon as this year that can show images taken by the glasses.
In the longer-term, Meta is planning a successor to the Orion smart glasses codenamed “Artemis” that would actually be sold to consumers as early as 2027.
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