Apple May Be Working on Multiple Styles and Frames for Its First Smart Glasses

Apple’s product line is not small: the company produces, among other things, smartphones, tablets, computers, headphones and smart watches. But aside from the Vision Pro, it’s a little late to break into the smart headset and glasses market, while other companies, notably Meta, have been pushing full steam ahead with their own smart wearable tech. But as anyone who follows tech rumors knows, Apple East is working on its own smart glasses – four glasses, in fact.

In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman claims that Apple is working on not just one design for its next smart glasses, but four. According to Gurman, there are two main models, each offering a slimmer or smaller variant. They include the following:

Gurman says all four models will use acetate rather than plastic, which could make the glasses more “durable and luxurious” than similar options offered by other companies. The company plans a number of finishes and color options, and may include black, ocean blue, and light brown. The goal here is to design something “immediately recognizable,” a concept Apple calls “iconic,” according to Gurman. Think about Apple AirPods, Apple Watch: these products are unlike anything else on the market, so when you see them, you know right away what they are and who makes them. Rather than developing smart glasses that look just like the rest, like the Meta Ray-Bans, the company wants you to know that it’s Apple Glasses you’re seeing.

Functionally, Apple’s smart glasses should be similar to the Meta Ray-Bans: you’ll be able to take photos and videos, sync with your iPhone, take phone calls, receive incoming notifications, play music, and chat with Siri hands-free: presumably, Apple’s AI-powered assistant, assuming the company actually releases it with iOS 27. Gurman says the glasses will pair with Apple’s upcoming AirPods and a new hanging device, which can both be equipped with integrated cameras for AI assistance.

My big question for Apple here concerns privacy: Smart glasses aren’t necessarily a privacy enthusiast’s dream design, as they subtly integrate cameras into the frames. You can walk around taking photos and recording videos of people without their knowledge, without attracting the same attention as if you were holding your smartphone. Gurman doesn’t talk much about this point, although he does say that Apple takes a slightly different approach to camera design than Meta: Apple’s cameras can be vertical ovals with surrounding lights, as opposed to the circular camera design of Meta Ray-Bans.

Although smart glasses are selling, I remain skeptical that they will take off in the same way that smartphones have. There are benefits to having a hands-free smart device in the form of glasses, but smartphones offer many more features, at least for now. Until we get to the point where AR technology makes head-up displays for glasses as easy to use as an iPhone, I’m not sure people will adopt this technology en masse.