Hands On With Android XR and Google’s AI-Powered Smart Glasses

Naturally, you can work in a mixed-reality environment with a connected Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, and you can put yourself in an immersive environment if you want to focus, or leave see-through mode turned on to make sure your coworkers aren’t taking photos and giggling while you wear a ridiculous headset to get stuff done. Gemini in XR A tap on the side of the headset brings up an app launcher, and this is where you can toggle on Gemini if you want it to persistently stay “on.” Once it’s on, there’s an icon at the top of the virtual space so that you are aware that everything you say and look at is being registered by Gemini. In see-through mode, you can walk up to an object and ask Gemini about it—a Googler demoing the headset walked up to someone else wearing an FC Barcelona shirt and asked Gemini to find the “standings of this team.” Gemini quickly registered the team name and pulled up search results with league standings and scores from recent matches. I watched some hikers walking along a trail and asked Gemini where this all was, and it said, “New Zealand.” I wasn’t able to verify that, but it looked like the right answer. Smart Glasses Project Moohan very much feels like Google and Samsung catching up to the rest of the VR market, though the Gemini integration gives their efforts a unique layer.