HTC releases its impressive VIVE Eagle AI smart glasses today in the US
The wearable allows users to choose between two different AI assistant ecosystems.
HTC's AI glasses are available in the US | Image by HTC
HTC has a new product that is being released in the US today. The HTC VIVE Eagle smart glasses offer AI assistants from Google (Gemini) and Open AI (ChatGPT) and are priced at $499. The glasses will be available in two different styles.
HTC's new AI glasses are now available
One model uses the extremely popular "Wayfarer" design. You know exactly what these look like, and if you don't, Google Tom Cruise dancing in his undies in "Risky Business." The other model uses another classic design called "Pantos." These feature a rounded lens design but are not circular like John Lennon or Harry Potter-type glasses are because of a flatter top rim.
Color options for the Wayfarer model include Black, Coffee, and Berry. For the Pantos model, the available colors are Charcoal Black, Clear Brown, and Navy. They will compete with the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses and the $499 price for the HTC glasses is just a little more expensive than the $459 Ray-Ban Meta Wayfarer Gen 2 model.
The AI smartglasses market is getting more crowded
The HTC VIVE Eagle is getting a little head start before Google and Samsung release their audio-only AI glasses this fall. Next year, Apple is expected to start shipping its first pair of glasses.
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Snap will release its AR-powered glasses later this year after announcing them back in June. These are more complex glasses since they use AR to project computer-generated images in front of the user's real-world view. Snap's AR glasses are priced at $2,195 and consumers can reserve one with a $200 pre-order deposit.
If the name of these glasses sounds familiar to you, it might be due to a story we wrote back in July when Amazon accidentally posted a pre-order page for the wearable before taking it down. The page that Amazon accidentally made public mentioned a September 1 release date, which turned out to be close to the date of today's release.
Here are some more great articles you can read:
The HTC VIVE Eagle AI glasses are now available. | Image by HTC
The VIVE Eagle alerts bystanders when the camera is active
The HTC VIVE Eagle addresses the concern that most smart glasses detractors have about being recorded on video or photographed without any advance warning. When the camera is in use, an LED indicator on the HTC VIVE Eagle will light up to let those standing around someone wearing the specs know that the camera is recording a video or being used to take snapshots.
The HTC VIVE Eagle website mentions some of the features found on the glasses including AI image translation. It will also translate audio using its open-ear speakers while in Listening Mode.
The glasses are equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 processor. The VIVE Eagle sports a 12MP Ultra-Wide Camera and carries 4GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. The 235mAh battery will provide 36 hours of standby time, continuous music playback for up to 4.5 hours and it can generate enough power for over 3 hours of continuous voice calls.
In Fast Charge, the battery will go from 1% to 50% in only 10 minutes, or from 1% to 80% in only 23 minutes using the magnetic charging cable. The wearable will work with an iPhone running iOS 17.6 and higher. It will also work with an Android phone with Android 10 and higher installed. It also supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 and later.
How the HTC VIVE Eagle is different than the competition
HTC says that the VIVE Eagle is different from other AI glasses because of its support for two different AI ecosystems (Gemini and ChatGPT), its focus on privacy, and what HTC calls its seamless support for smartphone integration. Users can make calls, play music, set reminders, manage calendars, and handle other voice-activated smartphone functions.
We should also point out that the HTC VIVE Eagle can be purchased with multiple ZEISS lens options. Of course, most of you remember HTC, which was one of the top smartphone manufacturers peaking with the HTC One (M8) in 2014.
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