Meta is reportedly set to delay its “Phoenix” mixed reality glasses until the first part of 2027.
According to an internal memo sent to employees and seen by Business Insider, the change will give the company “a lot more breathing room to get the details right.” The glasses were originally pegged to land sometime in the latter part of 2026.
“There’s a lot coming in hot with tight bring-up schedules and big changes to our core UX, and we won’t compromise on landing a fully polished and reliable experience,” Gabriel Aul and Ryan Cairns, VPs at Meta’s Reality Labs, wrote in the memo. Meta has yet to comment on the report.
In August, The Information reported that the glasses—then codenamed “Puffin”—would use a goggle-like structure, more similar to the Apple Vision Pro than the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. The device could weigh as little as 110 grams and would resemble a “bulky pair of glasses.” (The Vision Pro weighs up to 650 grams.)
In addition, the glasses are said to run on the same Horizon OS as Meta’s Quest headsets and will use what is called a “compute puck,” a small external unit that handles processing tasks on behalf of the glasses, presumably to make the glasses more lightweight. The report said the smart glasses were planned as an alternative to Meta’s heavier, more expensive VR headsets.
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The news comes after Bloomberg reported that Meta executives are eyeing cuts of up to 30% to its metaverse spending, with plans to shift some of those resources toward things like “AI glasses and wearables.” Meta axed the Quest Pro back in January 2025, which debuted at roughly $1,500, making 2023’s Quest 3 headset its flagship mixed reality product. So, if the new “Phoenix” glasses do land, it will mark a significant expansion of Meta’s mixed reality portfolio.
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