The Verge is covering the rapidly evolving world of wearables. We test everything from smartwatches like the Apple Watch, to smart glasses like the Meta Ray-Bans, to fitness trackers like the Oura Ring to find out which ones deliver on their promises. Follow along to find out whether covering our bodies in screens and sensors can actually make us smarter and healthier.
They’ve opened “at least one criminal probe” following complaints about the glasses being used to film women on the street in public without their consent, Reuters reports. France’s data protection authority also says businesses are “increasingly” asking if they can ban smart glasses at work, similar to a ban under consideration in Australia.
Late last night, we published my video about trying Snap’s Specs AR glasses at the company’s headquarters. The hardware, which costs $2,195, is interesting, but the experience of actually using them was rather finicky. Despite yesterday’s splashy launch event, the Specs also don’t yet have a firm release date beyond sometime this fall.
Check out my full article for more.
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Verge Score
A surprisingly consequential update for the world’s most popular smartwatch.
Spiegel just wrapped us up. I got to try the Specs, check out my story!
Heap is a Specs “visionary” (a celebrity partner), and she’s interacting with digital elements she can see in the Specs to make a song in real-time. It’s all very sci-fi.
Spiegel is trying it out now. He’s been flipping through a virtual book to try out different experiences, and got a letter from a virtual owl that was “sitting” on his arm. He’s also doing a Wingardium Leviosa spell.
Snap has spent half a decade working toward its first consumer pair of AR glasses. They’re finally here — and they’re bold as can be.
The case, available as part of a bundle for $2,395 (a $200 increase over the Specs on their own), gives you an option to more easily get internet while wearing the Specs. In the US, Snap is working with Verizon to offer data plans and financing options.
After a brief interlude about how Specs can work in enterprise environments, Spiegel is pitching how Specs can help you learn things. Spiegel is down a live demo showing himself practicing drawing. He’s using a real pen to trace a digital alien mascot that’s layered over a real piece of paper.
I usually can’t see his eyes — they’re hidden behind the digital content he’s looking at.
Right now, doing a live demo where he’s trying to watch a YouTube video in a browser on the Specs, and it’s not working. He’s starting all the way over. (It eventually worked.)
We’ll see how this goes! Right now, he’s showing some menus, including quick access items that he pulled up by looking at his palm.
He’s giving an overview of the Specs AR glasses, which were initially announced in June. He says we’ll get live demos.
Made a friend walking in the door. I should have asked what he’s looking at.
The show starts at 7PM ET, and I’m planning to post anything interesting out of it. You can catch a livestream on Snap’s website.
The Pixel Watch 2 and later are getting Gemini Personalization, allowing the AI assistant to learn from past conversations and connected Google apps. The 3 and on also get new double-pinch gesture controls, while the 4 gets a performance bump to raise-to-talk. A similar September update is rolling out to Pixel phones too.
[Google Pixel Watch Community]
9to5Google spotted this FCC entry for the Goertek-made SZGG8BL6, which lines up with other Google devices. Like the Fitbit Charge, it has Bluetooth and GNSS, but lacks Wi-Fi, while its e-label suggests it has a screen and could run wearOS similar to a mysterious wearable spotted in Google ads.
The developer of the iPhone app told Business Insider that he examined the Bluetooth signals emitted by popular smart glasses to establish corresponding fingerprints. The app can then alert users when a pair of potential “pervert glasses” are nearby.
This year’s iPhone event included Apple’s first foldable, an upgraded iPhone 18 Pro, and much more.
We’re ready for the long-rumored foldable iPhone, along with any new Apple Watches, AirPods, and other surprises.
It’s not too surprising that most of Apple’s wristwear is now listed as unavailable on its website for shipment or pickup (but not all — we did see some Ultra models available), with a product event scheduled for tomorrow, but MacRumors points out that the value-priced version of the Apple Watch is unavailable too.
Based on the rumors, we have been anticipating updates for the Apple Watch Series 11 and Ultra 3, and maybe the SE 3 is just taking a break in solidarity. We’ll find out tomorrow.
[MacRumors]
The smart ring company filed for an initial public offering on Thursday, revealing over $1.4 billion in revenue between July 2025 and June 2026, along with 5 million paid members.
Leaked photos and demo videos claim the Arcturus Vision Camera works out of the box! Plug it into the Frame’s nosebridge port, and get 5K60 10-bit HDR color plus spatial video recording. Valve isn’t offering native color passthrough to keep costs down, but looks like its passthrough partner got the greenlight! No price yet.
Abbott’s new 2-in-1 CGM will help diabetics monitor ketone levels. But can it avoid the wearable hype cycle?
I recently started running again. And, as I started building back to my first half marathon in almost a decade, I realized — my running playlist is hopelessly out of date. Nothing on there is newer than 2018, so tell me what keeps you motivated to power through the pain.
The version 5.07 update will allow you to “add and adjust more metrics” to workouts you manually log, as well as view these changes more quickly in workout summaries. Google also says the Health app’s built-in map now has faster load times and smoother rendering.
[Google Health Community]
The new $149 Meridian Band is a jewelry-inspired housing for the fifth-generation Whoop wearable that’s designed to make it look less like a boring gadget. The band is made from Milanese mesh and comes in a choice of black, silver, gold, and rose gold. You have to remove it to charge the device, however.
