What you need to know

  • Google announced Glass Enterprise Edition 2, its newest mixed reality headset for businesses.
  • The new headset will start at $999, undercutting the competion by thousands of dollars.
  • It features many improvements, including running on the Snapdragon XR1 platform.

Google on Monday unveiled the Glass Enterprise Edition 2, a new entry that aims to improve the efficiency for users in a variety of industries. This time around, the headset sees its price slashed down to $999, undercutting devices from Microsoft and Magic Leap.

With Glass Enterprise Edition, workers are able to access checklists, view instructions and send inspection videos and photos hands-free and on the go via the side display. The headset also features a camera that will help out with the mixed reality of the headset.

The second generation Glass Enterprise Edition is now built on the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR1 platform allowing it to run on a more powerful multi-core CPU and a new artificial intelligence engine. Some of the benefits of the new platform includes better battery life, enhanced performance and support for machine learning capabilities.

Google also improved the hardware. The camera has been upgraded and the headset now comes with a USB-C port instead of Micro-USB, which means it'll support faster charging. Since it is built on Android, it will be easier than ever for companies to develop and deploy their own applications. It also now supports mobile device management.

Glass Enterprise Edition 2 will start at $999, undercutting Microsoft's HoloLens and Magic Leap by thousands of dollars. Depending on companies' working relationship with Google, the headset may end up being even cheaper. Google did not reveal a date when companies can begin buying the new headset.