Samsung's Android XR Glasses Reportedly Land in Mid-December

A new report has surfaced about Samsung's Android XR-based smart glasses, called Intelligent Eyewear. According to information out of South Korea, the device will go on sale in mid-December. Earlier this month, another South Korean report, attributed to a Samsung executive, claimed the glasses would launch in November; the new report offers a clearer timeline for when they can actually be bought. Still, none of this is an official announcement.

The sales plan is not limited to timing. The glasses are said to be sold initially only in South Korea and the US, with Europe, China and Japan left out of the first wave. The price has reportedly not been set yet, so what the glasses will cost remains a big question mark.

Two markets first, the rest later

According to the report, Samsung wants to gauge the reaction in South Korea and the US before expanding to more regions. The approach is not new for the company: the Galaxy XR headset went on sale in the same two countries last October and only reached the UK in July this year.

The Galaxy XR example shows that moving beyond the first-wave markets took Samsung months in the past. No expansion schedule has been shared for the glasses yet, so users in regions outside the first wave will apparently have to wait.

What the glasses do and what is inside

Intelligent Eyewear runs Android XR with Gemini support. The device has no display; instead, it relies on a camera, microphones and speakers.

With that hardware, the glasses can perform real-time translation and give spoken directions. They can also photograph documents or meetings and automatically organize them in the Notes app on a Galaxy phone.

At the core of the hardware is the Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chipset. Samsung promises up to nine hours of use on a single charge.

Design partners and user reactions

The frames were designed in collaboration with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker. So far, Samsung has shown four models: two at Google I/O in May and the other two at a Galaxy Unpacked event.

The display-free design does not meet some readers' expectations. Some commenters say they will not buy a pair without a full-color display for both eyes. One anonymous commenter argues that mid-December makes no sense from a retail standpoint, saying sales should start in early November to take advantage of the holiday gift season. These are user opinions.