Last year grandma Sightful introduced a new product called the Spacetop G1, which is described as an “augmented reality laptop.” This is because the device consists of lightweight augmented reality glasses paired with a laptop with a keyboard and trackpad. The Spacetop G1 is now available for pre-order, but what does it tell us about the future of AR/VR devices?
Spacetop G1 is a laptop connected to AR glasses
For those unfamiliar, Spacetop G1 is, essentially a laptop without a screen. Instead, it's connected to special glasses with small 1080p displays to show you what's happening on the computer without interfering with the real world. 9to5Mac's Seth Weintraub had the opportunity to try out the device earlier this month and was very excited about the capabilities.
So this is the first time I’ve seen AR become a real product. Sure, I lined up to try Google Glass over a decade ago. I play a lot of games with my kids on Oculus. I’m always trying out the latest headgear. But until Spacetop, I hadn’t seen a finished product I wanted to use. A lot.
This could be just one of many features Apple is including in its AR headset, and the company could be gone in a few weeks. But to me, it represents the next (if familiar) step for desktop UI in the world of augmented reality.
In recent years, we have seen many companies bet on AR/VR devices. Apple officially joined the industry this year with the release of Apple Vision Pro, which combines both augmented and virtual reality. But AR and VR have not yet become mainstream, so the question arises: what is the ideal form factor for such devices to become attractive to the most people?
Augmented Reality Glasses and XR Headsets
While the Apple Vision Pro is undoubtedly one of the best headsets you can get in terms of technology, it does have some drawbacks—like being clunky and heavy on the head. And since it uses pass-through cameras, the actual image may not look very good in some scenarios.
AR glasses, on the other hand, can be a little less intrusive. Not only because they are more discreet, but also because behind the screens you can see the real world with your own eyes. Although these are not augmented reality glasses, I recently tried the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses with AI voice assistant and really enjoyed watching my face as an invisible computer.
My colleague Ben Lovejoy echoed the same thoughts:
My colleague Ben Lovejoy echoed the same thoughts:
Even if you don't usually buy Ray-Ban, I still think that $300 for the convenience of instantly capturing POV video without having to take your phone out of your pocket is a good price. Add to that the fact that you get headphones included (although personally I'd only use them for voice) and it's a very convenient package at a very decent price.
I’ I'm not particularly attracted to the Spacetop G1 as it exists today. However, the idea of AR glasses excites me much more than full-fledged XR headsets. I believe AR glasses are the future and hope Apple eventually introduces their own glasses.
What do you think about AR glasses? Let us know in the comments section below.
