Snap spins off Specs Inc, Spectacles smart glasses will launch later this year | Infinium-tech

As the smart glasses market heats up, Snap Inc. (the company behind Snapchat) is doing some corporate restructuring in preparation for the launch of its Spectrum smart glasses later this year.

The company is setting up Specs Inc. as a wholly owned subsidiary. It said the move would provide “greater operational focus and alignment” with the new market segment. Snap plans to remain the majority shareholder but says outside investment and partnerships are a possibility. This would also provide a clearer valuation of the smart glasses business as it would not be entangled with the company’s social network business.

Anyway, the glasses, called Spectrum, are coming later this year and will be used for work and play. Snap envisions you using Glasses on your own and in groups (be it family or coworkers) to learn in a simulated environment or review the virtual design of a new product.

Its core will be a “first-of-its-kind intelligence system” that is said to understand the world around you and provide greater interactivity with voice and gesture controls.

Interestingly, Snap is trying to present this as a green initiative – it says many real-world items will be replaced with virtual items, such as whiteboards and TVs, as well as toys. And since consumers will need fewer physical goods, less e-waste will be generated – electrons are infinitely recyclable!

It sounds nice, but we’re not sure how practical it is – yes, the Spectrum can replace a whiteboard (but how much waste does a whiteboard produce anyway?). But their ability to replace TVs will depend on the quality of the screen – and we don’t know much about screens yet. As far as toys go, games already exist and haven’t replaced physical toys, so we’ll see.

Source