Snapchat Announces the Fifth Generation of Spectacles
At its annual Snap Partner Conference, Snapchat announced the fifth generation of Spectacles, new standalone augmented reality glasses that let you use Lenses and experience the world with friends in entirely new ways.
Spectacles run Snap OS, the company's new, innovative operating system designed to enhance the way people interact naturally with the world.
Spectacles are available today as part of the Spectacles Developer Program . You can join the program in the US for $99 per month with a one-year commitment.
The subscription provides access to Spectacles and includes Snapchat support to help developers bring their projects to life.
Spectacles work seamlessly with your mobile device. With the new Spectacles app, you can use your phone as a dedicated gaming controller with the lenses, turn on Spectator mode so friends who don’t have Spectacles can watch, mirror your phone’s screen, and more.
The glasses are the result of a decade of research and development to deliver devices that break the boundaries of screens and bring people together in the real world.
Snapchat has equipped the glasses with four cameras that power the Snap Spatial optical engine and enable smooth hand tracking.
The optical engine leverages Snapchat technology to enable transparent AR displays. The ultra-small, high-power liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) displays produce clear, lifelike images.
Waveguides allow you to see images generated by LCD displays on silicon without the need for lengthy calibrations or custom equipment.
Each waveguide contains billions of nanostructures that direct light into your field of view to integrate Snap OS with the real world.
The optical engine provides a 46-degree diagonal field of view with a resolution of 37 pixels per degree – similar to a 100-inch screen from just 10 feet away.
Spectacles also automatically tint the physical lenses of your glasses based on the lighting of your environment, whether indoors or out, even in direct sunlight.
The glasses rely on two Snapdragon processors, as there is one processor in each arm.
The design enables immersive experiences while reducing power consumption, and works alongside titanium vapor chambers to improve heat dissipation. Spectacles offer up to 45 minutes of continuous standalone runtime.
According to Snapchat, Snap OS brings Spectacles to life with an intuitive interface and capabilities that reflect how people naturally interact with the world.
You can easily navigate Snap OS using your hands and voice, and the Snap Spatial Engine understands the world around you so lenses appear realistic in 3D.
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