Huawei Is Developing Smart Glasses That Will Replace Earbuds

Huawei is collaborating with Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster to develop its first smart glasses. The partnership will bring not just one pair but an entire lineup of connected glasses with dual microphones, speakers, and access to a voice assistant.

Whereas Google, with its now largely defunct Google Glass, focused on functionality, Huawei won't be sacrificing fashion sense, which is why it tapped Gentle Monster to co-develop the glasses in the first place.

Huawei Partners With Gentle Monster

Gentle Monster is a luxury eyewear brand hugely popular across Asia. Known for its experimental design, often its showrooms look more like avant garde art galleries, which Huawei CEO Hankook Kim showed onstage as he introduced the smart glasses. Most notably, they don't have any cameras, which enable them to look more like any regular glasses instead of a wearable tech monstrosity.

"How many people want to wear this as we meet our friends or lovers?" asked Kim, possibly taking a jab at the Snapchat Spectacles, which look too funky to be used in formal situations.

Smart Glasses

As for the pair of smart glasses itself, users will be able to tap the temple to answer calls, care of its dual microphones an speakers. This is also how they'll invoke the assistant, though it's unclear which one. They're IP67 dust and water resistant, and they charge wirelessly via a chic-looking case or a USB Type-C port.

More on those microphones — apparently, they have beam-forming technology to understand what the person says even if the device is sitting on their nose. There are also stereo speakers located right above the ear's. Huawei wants users to be able to hear sound without disturbing other people nearby, basically. The company is also positioning it as an earbuds replacement for this reason.

Huawei has yet to announce pricing, but as previously mentioned, it'll come in several styles and will launch sometime in June or July this year. Huawei says the eyewear will take "wearable intelligence to the next level." Time, of course, will tell if that's true. Make sure to check back with Tech Times as we learn more about Huawei's latest accessory. See it in action below: