Sports performance eyewear brand Oakley has always shown its love for futuristic, high-tech aesthetics through its eyewear designs. Most recently, the brand announced a new partnership with the famed North American esports team, 100 Thieves.
The partnership launched two new designs for an eyewear collection that helps support and boost gaming performance for wearers who spend long hours staring into monitors.
Both designs in the collection showcase the 100 Thieves Geo-Print, a graphic inspired by heads-up displays (HUDs) in video game maps; a 100 Thieves lens etch; and the 100 Thieves logo on the frame.
The collection also includes a custom-branded microbag and box sleeve, as well as a zippered hardcase for fans of the esports team.
While Oakley has previously released gaming and computer glasses that offer blue light protection, the eyewear brand continues to invest in emerging technologies.
Recently, a report from Bloomberg revealed that the brand is working with Meta to release its first sports-focused smart glasses.
The sports smart glasses would be based on Oakley’s distinct cycling sunglasses model, the Sphaera. Dubbed the Supernova 2, the glasses will make use of the Sphaera’s single-lens design to mount cameras on the center of the frame instead of to the side.
While we’ll still have to wait for further details on specs and features, the Oakley smart glasses will likely have similar features to the current Ray-Ban Meta glasses.
The Meta Orion
The Oakley x Meta glasses are only part of Meta’s continuing venture into the smart glasses arena. Meta previously announced its AR glasses through the Meta Orion project, which, unlike the Ray-Ban Meta and the upcoming Oakley smart glasses, would be without collaboration with established eyewear brands.
Instead, the Meta Orion looks chunkier and futuristic to accommodate the augmented reality display hardware. It also comes with an intuitive control system.
Instead of using clumsy remotes or controllers, the glasses use a mix of eye tracking, voice commands, and hand gestures. Meta has also introduced EMG wristbands for something it calls a “neural link” control for seamless navigation.
Other sports smart glasses
Meanwhile, the Oakley smart glasses will join several other sports-based smart glasses available on the market.
One notable sports smart glasses in the past was the Bose Frames Tempo, which was marketed as Bluetooth sunglasses that featured the audio brand’s OpenAudio™ design through Bluetooth connectivity.
More recently, eyewear brand Chamelo unveiled its tint-changing smart glasses, the Aura Rx. It’s dubbed the world’s first instant electronic tint-changing prescription smart glasses.
Using the glasses, wearers can instantly change the sunglasses’ tint with the push of a button. The Aura Rx builds on the success of its predecessor, the Aura sunglasses, which hadn’t integrated prescription lenses yet.
In 2022, Engo released smart glasses to help eliminate the need to glance down at a sports watch or smartphone for physical activity data. The glasses aim to promote and improve the safety of runners and cyclists by allowing them to fully focus.
The data displayed includes real-time speed, distance traveled, time elapsed, elevation gained, and more. Waving their hand in front of the glasses allows the user to switch between two separate banks of data.
Ray-Ban Meta’s success
Finally, while we’re yet to see more details about the Oakley smart glasses, industry experts and tech enthusiasts are just as excited, having seen the success of the Ray-Ban Meta.
The Ray-Bans recently enjoyed a star-studded Super Bowl ad and have since released various limited edition designs to emphasize its focus on design as much as tech.
For example, a recent collaboration with Coperni introduced sleek, transparent frames that debuted at the brand’s Paris Fashion Week show.
The transparent design references the 1990s-era LAN parties, reworking the classic Wayfarer with gray mirrored lenses and a semi-transparent black frame that shows off the internal hardware from Meta.
With Oakley’s range of glasses and sunglasses models, it’ll be interesting to see how Meta will continue to fit new technologies into the stylish, futuristic shades from the sports performance brand.
Featured Images: Pexels
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