Samsung starts developing smart glasses with a color display

While Samsung unveiled its first smart glasses a few months ago, the company has yet to launch them. That has not stopped the tech giant from starting work on its second-generation smart glasses, which will reportedly feature a color display.

According to a report from The Elec, Samsung has initiated the development of its first display-equipped smart glasses. Unlike the first-generation model, which relies strictly on audio and a connected phone, these glasses can show data directly on the lenses.

Samsung reportedly sent a formal request to Samsung Display last month to develop a microdisplay panel, outlining key requirements such as form factor, active display area, color reproduction capabilities, and target pricing.

The company is considering a compact panel measuring 0.2 inches or smaller so that it fits comfortably inside a standard eyeglass frame. It will use an optical magnification system to project images from the microdisplay into the user's field of view.

Samsung aims to show concise, glanceable information such as text, system icons, notifications, and navigation arrows directly in front of the eye, rather than on one side of the glass (like the Meta Ray-Ban Display).

Rather than aiming for rich multimedia playback, Samsung is targeting a 4-bit gradation level (16 brightness levels per color channel). Because the priority is sharp legibility for text and interface elements over photos and videos, the glasses will produce fewer colors than a typical smartphone or smartwatch display.

The primary engineering challenge remains achieving a wide field of view (FOV) across the lens while balancing color output and production costs.

The company has yet to decide whether the glasses will use a monocular configuration (a single display for one eye) or a binocular setup (displays for both eyes).

Industry insiders consider White OLEDoS (W-OLEDoS) the most commercially viable option due to mature yields and lower costs. W-OLEDoS combines white OLEDs on a silicon backplane with color filters.

While RGB OLEDoS panels deliver direct color without filters, they carry much higher manufacturing costs and lower production yields. LEDoS (MicroLED on Silicon) delivers superior brightness, but full-color integration and production yields remain significant bottlenecks.

It remains unclear which panel technology Samsung will ultimately select, but the glasses are planned for launch in the second half of 2027 or the first half of 2028.