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Two weeks ago at Snap’s Specs launch in LA, we were on site and published our extensive device review and market analysis. But one thing we failed to do was capture video footage of the device or our own commentary. Then last week, we were given a second chance.
While attending the Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii, we ran into our friends at Snap. And they had plenty of Specs units on hand to show off at the event. So we borrowed a pair and found a picturesque spot to set up our gear and film a review, which you can see below.
The quick version: Specs are a sizable step forward for AR, or what Evan Spiegel is calling intuitive computing. There are too many names for XR, but we sort of like this coinage. More importantly, Specs cash the check that Spiegel writes in being highly functional and spatial.
Among other things, this is built around Specs Intelligence, which could be a force multiplier for the device. As an agentic tool, it will create automations for users’ various life tasks – everything from navigation to personal alerts to pushing you line-of-sight flight information at the right time.
Change of Tune
Specs also differentiate with four key device attributes that we detail in the video: standalone architecture (no tether/puck), optical see-through display system (as opposed to video passthrough), spatial visuals (as opposed to flat visuals or no visuals), and consumer orientation.
No other device checks all four boxes though some – such as Xreal Aura – come close. This has lots of implications for still-nascent consumer markets and, in the meantime, enterprise markets. The latter could be Specs’ unintended (or possibly intended) dark-horse opportunity.
In any case, Specs don’t disappoint, which can be seen in the abrupt change of tune in the reviewer-corps. Social media trolls and hot takes are still there, but reasoned pro reviewers resoundingly like Specs. The consensus: this device deserves the size and price tag it carries.
See more in our full written review or below in the new video version. And stay tuned for more Specs coverage, including its public debut at the Westfield Mall in Century City, L.A., this Friday. Professional users and analysts aside, that will be a chance for Specs’ true test: real users.