Xreal has revealed more details about the Aura tethered smart glasses. The official release hasn’t been scheduled yet, but we’re now “just weeks away,” according to Xreal.
The smart glasses will launch in the U.S., Canada, Japan and South Korea to start and cost $1,829 for the 12GB+256GB variant and $2,149 for the 16GB+512GB variant. Xreal says that only those who reserved the Aura before October 7 will be eligible to pre-order and complete their purchases on release.
Aura uses split-compute architecture with comfortable optical see-through glasses with a tethered compute puck. It can download any Google Play apps and runs Android XR. It also has Sound by Bose, hand tracking, and a 70-degree field of view. The battery puck can also be used for trackpad navigation and can be carried by a lanyard or a pocket clip.
At Qualcomm Summit 2026, I got the opportunity to go hands-on with Xreal Aura for the second time. This time, I got to spend even more time with the smart glasses.
Again, I really like this Xreal Aura experience. At one point, I was looking at GarageBand on a MacBook, and I was able to ask the Aura questions about what was on the screen and how to get started on the Apple app. It was doing this just by using the Xreal Aura’s cameras and Gemini.
I also got to try out this very cool brain mapping app that’s not aimed at consumer use, but more for health professionals. This app let me split open the human head, look into the brain, blow up the brain huge and with object permanence, you’re able to walk around the brain and see it from different angles. I loved this; it felt so surreal, like out of an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. If I knew anything about medicine or biology, this would probably be even more interesting, and I can see how this could be very useful for learning, especially if you’re looking at a tumour in the brain and trying to figure out a good angle to dissect it. It’s worth noting that running this app made the puck crazy hot, but that makes sense given how much computing it takes.
I was also able to explore the Brooklyn Bridge using immersive view, and it felt like I was right there on the bridge. I was able to look and move around the area, which was quite cool. This wasn’t the first time I’ve used the Xreal Aura or Android XR platform, so the gestures and using the platform were incredibly easy, and I’ve always called it intuitive. Sticking out your palm and pinching opens a familiar Android-like menu. You can pinch to select apps. You can expand a window by pinching on the sides and pulling apart. I thought it was pretty intuitive and made sense.
I’m looking forward to Xreal Aura’s release date. Though they aren’t completely wireless, I like that they’re lightweight and that the puck can attach to a belt clip. Xreal Aura isn’t the answer to standalone smart glasses, but it’s a step in the right direction.
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