Lenovo Announces Consumer AR Glasses That Can Tether To iPhones

Lenovo is finally selling AR glasses for consumers with the recently-announced Lenovo Glasses T1, which Ars Technica's Scharon Harding got to demo. Here's an excerpt from her report: With their Micro OLED displays and required tether to Windows, macOS, Android, or iOS devices, they bring some notable features to a space that has piqued industry-wide interest but is still likely far from becoming ubiquitous. The early version of the T1 I tried had limited features; I was mostly only able to view a homepage with basic menu options and a desktop with icons for apps, like web browsing. Although the glasses weren't ready for me to watch a movie or hop around apps, I was impressed at how clear text and menu items were. This was in a sunny room with exceedingly tall windows. Even when facing sunlight, the few colors on display seemed vibrant and the text legible.

Lenovo specs the displays with 10,000:1 contrast and 1920x1080 pixels per eye. The glasses are also TUV-certified for low blue light and flicker reduction, according to Lenovo. Much more time is needed to explore and challenge the Micro OLED displays before I pass final judgment. But the combination of smaller pixels and, from what I saw thus far, strong colors, should accommodate screens so close to the eyes. More broadly speaking, brightness can be a concern with OLED technologies, but the small demo I saw fared well in a sun-flushed room.

I used the Glasses T1 while it was connected to an Android smartphone via its USB-C cable, but it's also supposed to work with PCs, macOS devices, and, via an adapter sold separately, iPhones. [...] With no processor or battery, it's easier for the glasses to stay trim. There are also no sensors or cameras like the Lenovo ThinkReality A3, announced last year, has. Other T1 features include a pair of speakers (one near each temple) and the ability to add prescription lenses. [...] The Glasses T1 are expected to be available in select markets in 2023 after debuting in China (as the Lenovo Yoga Glasses) this year. Lenovo didn't set a price, but I was told it's hoping to keep the glasses under $500.

And whenever you look at a map of

[RightwingNutjob]

Asia, it'll relabel all the islands as "PRC"

So, Just Tiny Displays

[NoMoreACs]

Without any standalone ability, how are these legitimate AR/VR Glasses?

Aren't they just 2 teeny-weeny 1080p monitors?

Re:

[Catvid-22]

Well, at least, they're much better, a quantum leap over Google's most successful VR eyewear. And, no, I'm not talking of Google Glass [wikipedia.org].

Re:

[NoMoreACs]

Well, at least, they're much better, a quantum leap over Google's most successful VR eyewear. And, no, I'm not talking of Google Glass [wikipedia.org].

I thought you had to get to around 4k before your brain is sufficiently happy with AR/VR.

Why?

[iAmWaySmarterThanYou]

I bought the latest greatest oculus just to see what it's about.

It was amusing for about 20 minutes but I didn't have any real use for it and saw nothing really "needful" in the tech.

So I gave it to my teen kid. She played with it for a few weeks playing some games online with her friends but they grew bored and found other games and moved on. Then nothing. It collects dust.

What is the use case for this technology for average people? Is there one? I know they've sold millions of these things but I wond

Re: Why?

[RightwingNutjob]

Fred Brooks (he of the Mythical Man Month) has a story about making some magic 3d vr thing back in the 80s or 90s for the stated purpose of helping organic chemists and biologists visualize and walk around giant hovering versions of large molecules.

The first time it was cool. The second time it was neat. The third time the chemist asked for a chair to sit.

From this one infers that the purpose of these gee whiz goggles is for another generation of engineers and product designers to internalize that same less

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:

[bill_mcgonigle]

If these aren't terrible I'll buy them to work on a train. Just a phone and Bluetooth keyboard.

Fuck off

[backslashdot]

I guess the contrast ratio is OK, but the 1920 x 1080 per eye ..yukky .. no thanks bro.. I'll pass. If I wanted to stare out a screen door I'll go visit my cousins in the South.

Really?

[ArkiMage]

> and required tether to Windows, macOS, Android, or iOS devices

Which warrants an exuberant "It works with iphones!" Seriously? Is your audience that shallow?

Clibkait title is clickbait

[nicubunu]

"AR Glasses That Can Tether To iPhones", when it is in fact "AR Glasses That Can Tether To Everything"

Brave or stupid

[trawg]

Announcing/releasing something like this before Apple launch theirs, which will almost certainly what defines the consumer AR market for the next decade. I say this as someone that owns zero Apple products. Seems unlikely they'll release something that isn't ready for the big time, unlike everyone else's half-assed forays into this space.

I'm more excited about AR than VR so I am pretty keen to see what they do.

hahalolhaha

[drinkypoo]

So you have to attach it to your phone with a cable, and it still costs $500?

GTFOH Lenovo