South Korean telecom firm, LG Uplus Corp., launched its augmented reality (AR) eyeglasses in collaboration with Nreal, a Chinese mixed-reality product developer, and chipmaker company Qualcomm Inc.
The device called “U+ Real Glass” would become the world’s first 5G-based wearable device made available on August 21.
The “U+ Real Glass” device connects to a user’s smartphone through a USB port and casts a 254 cm wide display. Multiple applications could play simultaneously while the smartphone serves as a remote control.
Previously, Microsoft and Google already developed AR glasses; however, the high cost of their devices amounting to 2.36 million won ($2,000) combined with a significant weight of around 300 grams restricted the demand for the products.
On the other hand, LG’s device costs less with a price of 699,000 won (US$590) and only weighs 88 grams. The device also features a more user-friendly system application.
LG intends to develop an updated version next year, which would offer hand gestures as a control for the device. Real-time gesture recognition technology would enable users to interact with objects virtually through their hands. The glasses would also include 5G-based AR content, which enables viewing programs and performances of celebrities.
Bringing AR Tech to 5G Environment
The company would offer the “U+ Real Glass” exclusively on selected smartphones and Samsung’s Galaxy Note 20. Also, LG intends to provide a conference-call service with the device in a venture with US AR developer, Spatial.
Nreal opted to promote the “U+ Real Glass” initially in South Korea due to its high-speed 5G network.
Joshua Yeo, Vice President of Nreal stated that the device entails a large amount of data so that a stable 5G environment would be required. Nreal plans to launch the product in Europe and Japan until early next year.
According to the ICT Ministry, LG Uplus enjoys 1.8 million 5G subscribers as of June this year, which comprises almost 24 percent of the country’s total 5G users.
International Data Corp., an industry tracker, expects an increase in the demand for AR glasses to reach 41.1 million units up to 2024 compared to only 200,00 units sold last year.
