Samsung's Ray-Ban rivalling smart glasses could steal Galaxy S25's thunder

It’s widely known that Samsung is preparing to launch the Galaxy S25 family of devices in 2025. But more recent information has suggested that the company is also going to move into a new category and launch its own smart glasses.

We’ve previously reported that these smart glasses are likely to be a rival for Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses and work in a similar way, with Samsung in partnership with Google and Qualcomm on the new XR device. And it now seems that we might get to see the new spectacles in January 2025 alongside the launch of the Galaxy S25.

That might cause something of a distraction, because from what we know so far, the Galaxy S25 phones appear to be a fairly predictable upgrade, whereas Samsung’s smart glasses will see it breaking into a new category. That's likely to prompt a lot of excitement.

Over the past decade, Samsung has regularly teased devices at Galaxy Unpacked, allowing the launch of the new hardware, before giving a glimpse of the next device to anticipate. This means there’s a soft announcement, followed by a more serious launch later in the year. In this case, it’s likely that the smart glasses won’t actually launch until July when the new folding phones are revealed.

According to Yonhap News, the first sighting of the new glasses will be via a video or image at Galaxy Unpacked, which is thought to take place on 22 January. The software reveal, however, is said to happen earlier, expected to be revealed in December 2024.

What will Samsung’s smart glasses do?  

Samsung’s smart glasses – or XR (extended reality) glasses – are said to lack a display, so like the Ray-Ban Meta glasses they’ll operate around the embedded cameras. That will enable various AI-powered functions, including facial recognition, the ability to scan QR codes and detect gestures.

Voice controls are expected, allowing some degree of interaction, along with audio feedback. The glasses are said to only weigh 50g, which is about the same as the Ray-Ban Meta. Much of the experience is likely to come down to integration with the app and it’s likely that we’ll be getting a closer look at the platform the glasses will run on fairly soon.

Details about Samsung’s venture (or return) to XR started to emerge in 2023 with the announcement of the partnership at the launch of the Galaxy S23. There have been subsequent confirmations, as recently as July 2024 at the launch of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6, where Samsung’s TM Roh told us to expect something “this year”.

However, Samsung plans to reveal the new device, it’s likely that we’re going to see something definite soon.