Google Starts Pre-Orders for Glasses with Gemini in the U.S. and South Korea, Priced from $395, to Launch on December 10 - ITmedia NEWS

Google has started pre-orders for its "intelligent eyewear" device, which is a joint development with South Korean Samsung Electronics, on November 12 (local time) in the United States and South Korea. The frame design is handled by U.S. Warby Parker and South Korean Gentle Monster, with general availability set for December 10. There is no mention of sales in Japan.

The price starts at $395 for the Warby Parker model and $449 for the Gentle Monster model. Warby Parker offers 14 styles based on three frames: "Alden," "Reid," and "Wren," while Gentle Monster provides 16 styles based on six frames, totaling 30 styles. Both brands offer clear lenses and sunglasses styles, and many models are compatible with prescription lenses.

The Warby Parker model will be sold only in the United States through the company's stores and website. The Gentle Monster model will be available in the United States and South Korea via their official online stores. Some Google Stores and Samsung stores will offer try-on demos.

The product was announced at Galaxy Unpacked in July. It does not have a display, instead capturing the wearer's field of view through a 12 million pixel camera embedded in the frame, and interacting with Gemini via voice. Users can say "Hey Gemini" or tap the frame to activate it. They can check calendar availability by looking at a poster in front of them, add the item they're viewing to their shopping list, and use real-time voice translation with "Google Translate" that supports over 70 languages. There is also a feature to capture whiteboard notes during meetings and have Gemini summarize the key points, which can then be saved to "Samsung Notes."

The chipset is Qualcomm's "Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1," with 2GB of memory and 64GB of storage. The device weighs approximately 41g, with a battery life of up to 9 hours on a single charge and up to 72 hours when using a charging case. It has an IPX4 water resistance rating.

Compatible smartphones include the Pixel 7 series and later after the "Android 17" update, as well as the Galaxy S/S FE/Z Fold/Z Flip/Z Fold Ultra series with "One UI 9.0" or later. However, some features, such as the visually impaired-focused "Guided Vision," will initially be exclusive to Android. Only users with a Google account aged 18 or older in the United States or South Korea can use the product.

Google also explained its privacy protection mechanisms on the same day. An outward-facing LED lights up during photo or video recording, and the device is designed so that it cannot be recorded if the LED is covered or tampered with. Before sending images to Gemini, the faces of people captured in the frame are automatically blurred. The camera footage is not saved in "Gemini app activities" and will not be used for AI model training or advertising targeting. Also, Google Play does not allow apps that enable social live streaming using the glasses' camera or apps that identify faces in real time.

Note that as for glasses with a display that adopt "Android XR," the Chinese XREAL is ahead with its "XREAL AURA" scheduled for release this autumn. AURA is equipped with an optical see-through display with a 70-degree field of view, and it is designed to connect with an external computing pack via a cable. The price in the United States is 1,279 dollars for the 12GB memory and 256GB storage model, and 1,499 dollars for the 16GB memory and 512GB storage model. Until the end of December, they are being sold at a limited-time price of 1,099 dollars and 1,299 dollars respectively. In Japan, pre-orders are being accepted at prices of 229,800 yen and 269,800 yen respectively.