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The Chinese brand presented a pair of connected glasses, designed for augmented reality. With a MicroLED screen and an on-board camera, the accessory is intended to be a true companion in everyday life.
Xiaomi presents the Mijia Glass Camera, glasses connected to augmented reality © Xiaomi
The technological battle is likely to take place in the coming years in the field of connected glasses. After the announcement of Google Glass and Oppo Air Glass, which Les Numériques tested for you, it’s Xiaomi’s turn to offer its concept of connected glasses, the Mijia Glass Camera. A promising project, in the drawers since 2021, but far from perfect.
A host of functions
Xiaomi presents its augmented reality glasses as the perfect companion for everyday life. For this, he relies on cameras to capture any moment, with a zoom to increase the possibilities. But the real added value of the Mijia Glass lies in the presence of a screen. It is, among other things, on this that the instant translation service will be displayed, using the same system as that of Google. The device is currently reserved for the Chinese market, only English and Chinese are taken into account by this feature. In addition, a system for recognizing animals and plants will be of interest to the most curious. Finally, the MicroLED screen can also display GPS instructions in augmented reality, like a head-up display for pedestrians or cyclists.
Technical sheet
To achieve its goals, Xiaomi had to abandon its dream of offering glasses that blend in with the mass. Its Mijia Glass will clearly not go unnoticed in everyday life. In order to accommodate all the technology necessary for the proper functioning of its glasses, Xiaomi had no other choice but to opt for a fairly thick frame, installing various and varied devices on each of the branches.
On the right, there is a MicroLED screen designed by Sony, thanks to which the various information in augmented reality can be displayed. MicroLED differs from OLED technology by its thinness and increased durability, but also by self-emitting diodes with a lifespan of 100,000 hours. The display boasts a peak brightness of up to 3,000 nits with a pixel density of 3,281 ppi.
On the left, there is a double photo sensor which will make it possible to capture the surrounding environment. The device is made up of a 50-megapixel main sensor and an 8-megapixel periscopic telephoto lens with optical stabilization (OIS) and 5x optical or 15x hybrid zoom. A whole device that allows the wearer of the Mijia Glass Camera to take photos and film, knowing that the files can be transferred to the phone, via a companion application of course. Xiaomi has chosen to integrate a small diode alongside the lenses to indicate that they are filming and to avoid possible abuse.
Also added to this is an 8-core Snapdragon SoC, accompanied by 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage, as well as a 1020 mAh battery which, according to Xiaomi, would allow continuous filming for 100 minutes on a single charge. Recharging, it is intended to be fast since the recharging technology (yet only 10W) makes it possible to recover 80% of the battery in just 30 minutes. Good point, despite all this paraphernalia, the Mijia Glass Camera weigh only 100 grams.
A product that will be financed through crowdfunding
The Mijia Glass Cameras are still far from being on the shelves, especially in France. Xiaomi has launched a crowdfunding program on the manufacturer’s online store, Xiaomi Youpin. Only one condition to participate: reside in China. To register and hope to receive your glasses, you have to pay 2,499 yuan, or approximately 360 euros. And for those who have not taken advantage of the special price within the framework of this fundraising campaign, the brand will make it possible to obtain the AR glasses for 2,699 yuan, or approximately 390 euros. No information on marketing outside Chinese borders has filtered.