The previously nascent AR smart glasses market grew quite a bit in 2023, with companies like TCL, XReal, Rokid releasing vastly improved gen-two (or even gen-three) products that were well-reviewed. The team at XDA tested all the best smart glasses, and while we found them very useful for watching movies and working on the go (my colleague Karthik spent a week using the XReal Air 2 in place of a proper monitor), ultimately they are mostly just a portable, wearable screen, without doing any real "augmenting" of our reality.

I think this will change in 2024, because I think the launch of the Apple Vision Pro — rumored to be in February — will further push AR eyewear into the mainstream. I actually tried the Vision Pro when I attended Apple's WWDC (Worldwide Developer Conference) last June, and I was blown away by the experience. It offered a real "augmented reality" experience, with digitally rendered visuals displayed in front of my line of vision, floating over the real world space. I know there has been no shortage of snark or skepticism about the Vision Pro, given the high price and previous failures of similarly bulky headsets from the likes of Microsoft, but I think Apple's headset will succeed, and I think when people try it, word of mouth will spread. I think this will spearhead further growth of the AR market, with more ambitious AR glasses hitting the market that will do more than just be a wearable display.

Xiaomi and TCL should have real AR glasses coming

TCL's RayNeo sub-brand released a pretty good pair of glasses named the Air 2 last year — it was also mostly just a wearable screen that mirroed whatever is showing on the source device — but that was not the company's flagship AR product, because the company had already teased the X2, a more ambitious piece of eyewear with a Qualcomm silicon that can project its own UI. The X2 was supposed to launch in 2023 but got delayed, but I've been hearing it's ready for a Q1 2024 launch. In fact, I already have meetings set up to demo the glasses ahead of release.

I have a feeling the TCL RayNeo X2 won't be the only pair of truly standalone AR glasses launching soon. At last year's Mobile World Congress I demo'ed a prototype Xiaomi AR glasses that were completely wireless, and also had its own processor and UI. While Xiaomi has not confirmed any official information, I am hearing from sources well-connected to the Chinese tech scene that the glasses will see an actual commercial release in 2024.

If the smartphone scene is anything to go by, we know Chinese brands have no qualms about pumping out products at breakneck pace. I don't think established AR eyewear brands like XReal and Rokid will sit idly by if TCL and Xiaomi are launching truly wireless AR glasses.

Qualcomm is banking on the industry with new silicon

One company we know is pushing hard for an AR future is Qualcomm, the San Diego chipmaker which has seen business drop from declining Android sales. AR glasses are seen as perhaps the next big thing in computing, and Qualcomm is all in, announcing earlier this year a new XR Gen 2 chip, which will power Meta's Quest headset, and also a Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chip that's for smaller AR eyewear.

It's not just hardware, but software will improve too

Once the Vision Pro launches and more people begin to realize the benefit of being able to watch a movie, or browse through old photos, or play games on a large screen that fills the entire line of vision, app and software developers will jump on board to build. Yes, they'll be building for Apple's platform first, but I think this should lead to a better app/software situation for non-Apple AR glasses too. Chinese brands have a history of, uh, "borrowing" from Apple design elements, and once the Vision Pro is a real retail item, we will see other software adopt some of its ideas and UI elements.

Apple is a proven trendsetter

Remember when Apple removed the headphone jack from iPhones in 2016; introduced the notch in 2017; and stopped including chargers with iPhones in 2020? These were all decisions that were mocked at the time but quickly adopted across the industry. For better or for worse, Apple is the tech company that sets the rules that the rest follow. The Vision Pro is not only going to inspire similarly high-end expensive competitors from the likes of Samsung or Huawei, but it will open the floodgate to brands making more affordable alternatives.