Vuzix Corp. has started taking preorders for a pair of smart glasses it first announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2018.

Called the Vuzix Blade, the glasses are the company’s first entry into the consumer smart glasses market. They’re also claimed to be the first smart glasses to come with built-in support for Amazon.com Inc.’s Alexa smart assistant.

Resembling a more traditional pair of sunglasses, the Blade comes with a Quad Core ARM processor,  an 8-megapixel camera with 720p video capabilities and the Android operating system.

Designed to operate more like a smartwatch for the eyes than a completely standalone device, the glasses are designed to work with a smartphone but can also connect directly to the internet via WiFi.

The screen in the device, described by Vuzix as offering a Cobra II DLP-based display with Waveguide-based see-through optics, is reminiscent of Google Glass in that it projects an image users see onto a lens, but with higher quality.

To operate it, users can use the device’s internal voice control system or a series of multifingered swipes on the right-hand side of the sunglasses’ frame.

Audio comes via Micro USB earphone jack with full Bluetooth functionality and inputs processed by a noise-canceling microphone.

Alexa support, which can deliver audio and visual information to users, is installed in the glasses by default, but the company is also working on adding Google Assistant as well.

While seemingly pitched as a watch alternative, the glasses do also offer some limited augmented reality game support. Vuzix said it will demonstrate “AR enhanced golf training by Oncore Golf” at its CES booth in Las Vegas next week.

The glasses do not come cheap, with the base model priced at $999. Preorders can be placed now, with shipping expected to begin at the end of the month. A model that has support for prescription lenses is reported to be coming shortly with a price tag of $1,200.

Photo: Vuzix