Questions remain before the arrival of specs smart glasses from Snap CEO.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel has had to defend the company’s brash launch into the smart glasses market, yet investors remain unconvinced when it comes to consumer appetite for the new product, ahead of its official rollout.
On the Snap second quarter earnings call, investors asked Spiegel about the preorder numbers for the company’s much-anticipated augmented reality smart glasses, Specs. But Spiegel didn’t get into particulars about sales or preordering, instead, he emphasized the importance of consumers having a first-hand experience of the product.
The remarks were made just weeks before Snap’s September launch event, at which it aims to unveil Specs to a wider audience.
The wearable device has been developed over 10 years by Snap, and is considered a potential step forward in the future of computing. At $2,195, however, it’s making a play into a tough market segment, as people have been hesitant to buy pricy wearable tech.
Hands-on experience is what consumers demand, says Snap.
Spiegel stated when asked about the demand for the Specs, there are many people out there that need to try the device before they really realize what it’s worth.
Developers and techies already know the platform, so they know the technical improvements in this generation, he said. The mass market, however, will probably need demonstrations, he said.
The next event, Spiegel says, will be crucial in getting Specs out to the general public.
The CEO’s answer didn’t disclose the number of preorders, so investors are still not sure about the early demand.
Competitive market; Premium Price.
Specs is entering a growing smart-glasses market at a steep price compared to many of the competitors.
Meta’s recently released, Ray-Ban-branded smart glasses, which have been built in partnership with Ray-Ban manufacturer EssilorLuxottica, are priced at approximately $350, a much more mainstream price point.
In comparison, Apple’s Vision Pro headset is on the high end of things at about $3,500.
Snap’s Specs isn’t quite as advanced as either of these, but rather has a different take on the virtual reality experience – instead of the standard full VR headset, these are augmented reality glasses.
Snap’s job is to convince consumers that the technology will be worth the high expense.
Snap’s Long-Term Strategy is in Question, Investors Say
Investors also asked on the call if Snap has the capital to battle the much bigger tech firms head-to-head in the smart glasses space.
There are also giants in the industry like Apple, Meta and Alphabet who have much more money to invest and a strong hardware ecosystem.
Investors had questions for Snap about why they chose to build Specs themselves instead of with a bigger tech firm.
Snap says that it is very valuable to develop the next important computing platform, to which Spiegel replied “We think that’s a really important opportunity for us going forward.
He said that Snap has demonstrated its ability to be an innovator, and that is a strength in the future when it comes to introducing new categories of technology.
Snap feels it has gained a first-mover advantage.
Spiegel’s attention was captured by Snap’s track record of developing new products in crowded spaces.
He likened the company’s early social media play to its recent smart glasses venture, where Snap launched into a saturated social networking sector that already has a number of players, such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
The difference with Specs is that Snap is going into an emerging category where it thinks it has a first-mover advantage, Spiegel said.
It’s been years of development and building technology, and asking developers to bring experiences to the platform.
Such a developer ecosystem may be a significant advantage if AR Glasses are to become a mainstream computing platform.
Mass adoption may yet be years down the road.
Though Spiegel noted that many people were optimistic about the technology, it’s not going to happen overnight.
Mass-market success could be within reach at the end of the decade, he said.
One significant problem is that of making the product more affordable and better designed.
For smart glasses to gain popularity, there will be a number of issues that will need improvement, including weight, battery life and cost.
Until they are as easy to use as a pair of glasses, consumers will unlikely be willing to use an expensive, bulky device.
Even the initial stages of development could be hindered by developers.
Consumer acceptance is unknown, but Snap thinks developers might help generate demand for Specs.
Developers have been working on apps and experiences for the platform for years, the company states.
This could help Snap get a head start in developing an augmented reality experience catalog, before others catch up.
Many technology platforms have focused on hardware, but the applications and services that the users can access are also important to the success of the platform.
Snap says it expects the developer experiences to help prove the power of Specs and lead to more adoption.
Smart Glasses’ Future is Uncertain
Snap’s purchase of Specs is part of a broader trend in technology: companies are looking for a big new computing platform to follow the smartphone.
Smart glasses have become a hot topic as they would be capable of eventually mixing digital content with real-world content in a more natural manner than smartphones.
But past wearable tech prototypes have demonstrated that it’s not easy to get consumers to wear them.
The success of Specs will rely on whether or not Snap can teach people that augmented reality glasses are not only an interesting innovation, but on a useful everyday product as well.
For the moment, Snap’s priorities are on rolling out the technology and developer support, before aiming for widespread adoption.
The company’s greatest hurdle may not be developing the advanced glasses, but convincing people that they need them.
