Sunday Reboot: AirPods will be the best smart glasses

In this week's Sunday Reboot, the AirPods Pro with cameras are probably the best alternative to smart glasses that Apple could have come up with. Rumors about developing a new breed of AirPods Pro with built-in cameras have been circulating for some time, aiming to capture images of the local environment to feed data into your iPhone's Visual Intelligence.

Apple has previously integrated heart rate tracking in AirPods Pro 3 and some Beats earbuds, making the addition of extra sensors in earbuds not entirely out of the realm of possibility. While there were doubts about the sophistication of capturing and transferring data from outside the world to your iPhone, a leak from Apple itself seemed to confirm the existence of such devices.

A video demonstration in the macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate showed the potential capabilities of these earwear, like identifying books and saving them for later. The video also hinted that the sensor might be positioned in the tip where the microphone usually goes. The device was able to capture and combine left and right-paired images taken by each AirPods Pro camera for Visual Intelligence, providing a stereoscopic view that could help in understanding distances and compensating for head movements.

The AirPods Pro with cameras would also be capable of processing some data onboard instead of relying solely on the iPhone. However, privacy concerns remain a significant issue, with the tiny 1-megapixel resolution and lack of zoom making it difficult for spying purposes. Apple's commitment to privacy and the limited potential for misuse suggest that these devices are unlikely to face serious privacy scandals.

Among Apple's current wearables lineup, the AirPods Pro with cameras seem like the most capable AI-centric product, potentially offering a better alternative to smart glasses without the bulk and discomfort of the Apple Vision Pro or the pendant-like Apple Glass. For those who wear glasses, the AirPods Pro with cameras provide the same smart glasses benefits without the need for a change in frames or having to switch between smart and non-smart glasses.