Mobile World Congress looks ahead to tomorrow's AR glasses

FORGET smartphones -- what if the real stars of this year's Mobile World Congress were augmented reality glasses? Although still at the concept stage, a new generation of prototype devices could be poised to revolutionize the sector as we know it.

In the aisles of the 2023 edition of Mobile World Congress, which runs until March 2 in Barcelona, Xiaomi is causing a stir with its new prototype wireless augmented reality glasses. Combined with a smartphone, they are able to display of a full range of applications, starting with TikTok and YouTube.

Equipped with their own chip -- the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1 processor -- these glasses run on the Snapdragon Spaces development platform, making them compatible with the latest smartphone models, starting with the Xiaomi 13. Above all, these glasses offer users a novel control system, through finger movements, performed in front of the wearer's eyes, with no need for a smartphone in hand. This can be used to stretch or reduce the size of the visible display, but also to open an application or scroll through information.

Eventually, Xiaomi aims to offer a much broader and more convenient user experience. The idea to one day be able to allow users to capture a screencast from a TV set and then enjoy it via the glasses while moving around, for example. Meanwhile, gesture recognition could allow users to turn on or off a connected lamp simply by simulating the action on a virtual button.

Presented as a concept, these glasses should give rise to a first limited release, via a "Discovery Edition," although Xiaomi has not yet confirmed a release date or price.

Back at MWC, another Chinese manufacturer, TCL, has moved into the field of augmented reality, presenting its ambitious glasses also still at prototype stage. The RayNeo X2 glasses have the distinction of offering a full-color interface. Here, however, users navigate in a more traditional way, using small taps on the arm of the glasses. It is then possible to access mostly practical features, such as displaying weather information or subtitles and instant translations. These glasses can also take pictures and record video.

By presenting glasses with advanced technology (albeit not always finalized), Chinese manufacturers are no doubt vying to compete with products from American brands, starting with Meta, all while waiting for Apple to finally enter the game.