- Google has finally started accepting pre-orders in the US and South Korea for its smart glasses powered by the “Android XR” cross-platform OS, known as “Intelligent Eyewear.”
- The collections available for pre-order this time are designed by the South Korean eyewear brand “Gentle Monster” and the US eyewear brand “Warby Parker,” with engineering handled by Samsung.
- As stipulated in Google’s terms of service, using “Intelligent Eyewear” requires users to be at least 18 years old and have a US or South Korean Google account.
On Thursday, November 12, 2026 local time, Google finally began accepting pre-orders for “Intelligent Eyewear,” a pair of smart glasses powered by the “Android XR” cross-platform OS.
“Intelligent Eyewear” is an “Android XR”-based smart glasses platform that was officially announced at the “Google I/O 2026” developer event held on Tuesday, May 19, 2026. The collections now available for pre-order were designed by South Korean eyewear brand “Gentle Monster” and US eyewear brand “Warby Parker,” with engineering handled by Samsung.
Pre-orders for the “Intelligent Eyewear” collections opened in the US and South Korea on Thursday, November 12, 2026, with an official release scheduled for Thursday, December 10, 2026. Please note that, as stipulated in Google’s terms of service, using these glasses requires users to be at least 18 years old and possess a Google account registered in either the US or South Korea.
In other words, because of the account-based region lock, even if you import “Intelligent Eyewear” into another region, it cannot be used with a Google account from outside the US or South Korea. Please be aware of this limitation.
Of course, other issues such as radio frequency compliance (like Japan’s TELEC certification) will also apply.
“Intelligent Eyewear” Collections
The “Gentle Monster” “Intelligent Eyewear” collection features a lineup of six designs—including bold colors like dark red, pink, gray, and yellow—combined with tinted, clear, blue, or brown lenses.
Prescription lenses are also available for most frames, with prices starting at $449. They will initially be sold in the US and South Korea.
The “Warby Parker” “Intelligent Eyewear” collection offers three styles inspired by the brand’s popular silhouettes: “Alden,” “Reid,” and “Wren.”
Available in both optical and sunglasses specifications across three colorways—”Pine,” “Saddle,” and “Jet Black”—prices start at $395. Additionally, guided demonstration experiences will be held at over 360 local “Warby Parker” retail stores.
Weighing in at approximately 41g, “Intelligent Eyewear” features a battery that lasts up to 9 hours on a single charge. Furthermore, it comes with a dedicated charging case capable of recharging the frames up to 7 times.
Compatible Android and iOS devices include Google Pixel devices running the new-generation “Android 17 (QPR2)” OS starting from the “Pixel 7” series, Samsung Galaxy device series running “One UI 9.0” or later, and “iPhone 13 Pro” or later models.
Gemini Integration, Camera, and Audio Specifications
“Intelligent Eyewear” integrates Google’s AI, “Gemini,” enabling hands-free operation simply by saying “Hey Gemini” or tapping the frame.
Users can ask questions about street art or posters right in front of them, add items to shopping lists, check calendar availability, use voice navigation via Google Maps, and enjoy real-time speech translation with auto-detection for over 70 languages via Google Translate. Furthermore, the glasses include “Guided Vision”—a new feature that provides conversational audio descriptions of surroundings for the visually impaired or low-vision users—as well as integration with “Aira Explorer,” which allows users to stream camera footage to human visual interpreters for support.
The device is built with a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, allowing users to take photos and videos via button controls or voice commands to Gemini. Alongside HDR processing and image stabilization, it also supports immersive spatial audio capture.
On the audio front, the glasses feature custom-tuned open-ear speakers, enabling music playback via YouTube Music, Spotify, and Apple Music, listening to Audible audiobooks when paired with Android, checking and replying to group chats, and making hands-free calls.
Privacy-First Design
Alongside the announcement of pre-orders for “Intelligent Eyewear,” Google has also detailed its hardware and software privacy protection designs aimed at safeguarding both the wearer and those around them.
Camera footage used by Gemini’s vision features is not saved to Gemini history, nor is it used to train AI models or for ad targeting. Additionally, before footage is sent to Gemini, the system automatically removes (blurs) the faces of people in the background, and directional microphones are used to focus specifically on the wearer’s voice. Data stored on the device and in transit is encrypted, with future support planned for “Private AI Compute” technology.
On the hardware side, the glasses feature an outward-facing LED indicator light that notifies people nearby when photos or videos are being recorded. Sensors detect if the light is covered or disabled and will immediately halt recording.
The device also includes a physical power switch to completely power down the glasses whenever they are being used just like regular eyewear, as well as granular permission controls for camera and microphone access per app. Additionally, platform-wide anti-abuse measures are being introduced, such as banning live streaming and real-time facial recognition apps on Google Play, and prohibiting the promotion of products designed to conceal indicator lights on Google Shopping and Google Ads.
Please note that the initial rollout of “Intelligent Eyewear” is limited to the US and South Korea.
Source: Google (https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/technology/xr-ar/google-intelligent-eyewear-collections-pre-order/)