Google, Samsung and Apple are getting into glasses: what's coming, when, and why none of it has a display

Published on 2026-09-07

Over the next eighteen months the three biggest names in consumer electronics will all be selling glasses: Google and Samsung together this fall, Meta before the year is out, and Apple in 2027.

There is one detail almost nobody is leading with: none of those first products has a display.

This is not a rumour. Google said it on its own blog, Bloomberg's reporting covers Apple, and Samsung showed the finished product at its July Unpacked. All three giants are entering through the lowest door: audio glasses with a camera and an assistant — exactly the category Meta has owned since 2023.

Here is what is known, with dates, and what it means if you were holding off on a purchase.

The short version: who launches what, and when

Google and Samsung: fall 2026, no display

This is the imminent one, and the one that matters most.

Google showed them at I/O on 19 May 2026 and Samsung showed the finished product at its July Unpacked. Samsung calls them Galaxy Glasses; Google calls the category Intelligent Eyewear. They arrive in four designs: two from Gentle Monster and two from Warby Parker.

What is known about the specs:

• No display. Audio, camera and assistant.
• Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 — the same chip as the Ray-Ban Meta.
• A single 12 MP camera, for photos, video, and so Gemini can see what you see.
• Up to 9 hours per charge, plus seven more full charges from the case.
• 48-50 grams, directional speakers in the temples.
• Gemini built in: live translation, turn-by-turn navigation, notification summaries, questions about whatever is in front of you.
• They work with Android and with iPhone.

What is not known: the price and the exact date. Samsung gave neither at Unpacked. Industry analysis points at $300-400 to compete with Meta, but that is an estimate, not a figure.

The number that stands out is the battery. Nine hours is roughly double what any camera-equipped pair of glasses manages today. If it holds up in testing, it is the best figure on the market.

Apple: 2027, and no display either

Apple arrives last, and late.

According to Mark Gurman (Bloomberg, July 2026), Apple's first glasses — codenamed N50 — will be unveiled at WWDC in June 2027 and go on sale in late 2027. The original plan was a late-2026 unveil and an early-2027 launch; it has slipped by a full year.

They will carry two camera sensors: one for photo and video, another for computer vision. And no display: cameras, speakers and microphones for calls, AI queries, music and capturing images.

Gurman gives two reasons for the delay: engineering refinement, and the need to build a privacy story that separates Apple from Meta.

Translated: waiting for Apple means waiting fifteen months for a product that does less than the Ray-Ban Meta you can buy today.

Meta: two new models already filed

Meta has announced nothing. The FCC has.

There are filings for production units named Ray-Ban Meta Scriber (model RW7001) and Ray-Ban Meta Blazer (RW7002). The model numbers are new, which points to a genuine hardware generation rather than a minor refresh. The visible technical change is connectivity: they move to Wi-Fi 6 on the 5.9 GHz band, from Wi-Fi 6E at 6 GHz on the current generation.

The part that matters is timing. Across Meta's last three hardware generations, the FCC filing landed less than a month before launch.

What the filing does not say is whether either of them has a display.

The display doesn't arrive until 2027

This is the piece worth understanding before you wait for anyone.

Google conceded at I/O that its display glasses — the ones that overlay information on the lens — won't reach retail until 2027 at the earliest. What does arrive sooner is XREAL's Project Aura, but that is a tethered product: it runs on a cable to a separate puck holding the battery, which is not what people picture when they say "glasses with a display".

Samsung is on the same road. Its display version — reportedly in single- and dual-display variants — is planned for 2027, with a real risk of slipping to 2028.

And Apple, as covered above, isn't even attempting a display on its first product.

In other words: the three giants will take one to two years to ship something that is already on the market.

So do I wait, or do I buy?

It depends entirely on what you actually want.

If you want a display on the lens, don't wait. It already exists, and none of the three makes it. The RayNeo io has one at €549, and the Even Realities G2 reaches 48 hours of battery with a discreet text display. The most advanced thing on the market — display, camera, AI and phone apps — is the RayNeo X3 Pro, though its real battery life is its great weakness. Waiting on Google or Apple for a display means waiting for 2027 or 2028.

If what you want is audio glasses with a camera and AI, waiting does make sense — but not for long: weeks, not years. The Galaxy Glasses land this fall and the two new Meta models look imminent. If you were about to spend €400 on Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 in September, holding until October to see what Samsung puts on the table — and what that does to Meta's pricing — is reasonable.

If you have an iPhone and were waiting for Apple, that wait doesn't add up: fifteen months, for a product with no display. The Galaxy Glasses work with iPhone anyway.

Our read: 2026 is the year audio glasses become a category with four serious manufacturers and a price war. The display, meanwhile, stays Chinese territory for at least another year.

Frequently asked questions

When do Google and Samsung's glasses come out? In the fall of 2026. Samsung showed the finished product at its July Unpacked but gave no exact date and no price.

Do the Galaxy Glasses have a display? No. They have a 12 MP camera, directional speakers and Gemini, but they project nothing onto the lens. Samsung's display version is planned for 2027, possibly slipping to 2028.

When do Apple's glasses come out? According to Bloomberg, they will be unveiled at WWDC in June 2027 and go on sale in late 2027. They have no display either: two cameras, speakers and microphones.

How much will the Galaxy Glasses cost? There is no official price. Industry analysis points at $300-400 to compete with the Ray-Ban Meta, but that is an estimate.

Do Samsung's glasses work with an iPhone? Yes. Google confirmed they integrate with both Android and iOS phones.

Is it worth waiting for Google, Samsung or Apple? If you want a display on the lens, no: none of the three sells one before 2027, and display models are already on sale. If you want audio glasses with a camera, waiting a few weeks for the fall is reasonable.