Apple’s strategy for smart glasses is the same as its strategy for smart watches

Apple isn’t just looking to compete with Meta in the smart glasses market; It’s looking to flip the glasses as a whole, according to Bloomberg Mark Gorman. When the Apple Watch launched, it wasn’t just competing with the Pebbles and Motorolas of the world. The company also had Swatch, Fossil, and Seiko in its crosshairs. Likewise, Apple’s smart glasses will be pitted against not only Miata and Samsung, but also Oakley, Ray-Ban, and Warby Parker in the $200 to $500 range.

The Apple Watch generates an estimated $17 billion a year, but glasses could be an even bigger prize. The value of the watch market is estimated $132 billionAccording to Mordor Intelligence, the Spectacles are estimated to be born between $180 and 200 billion dollars annually.

It’s worth noting that Apple doesn’t plan to play at the higher ends of the market, leaving companies like Cartier and Matsudato to cater to luxury customers. The company tried to compete in the luxury watch market with the $10,000 gold Apple Watch, but it didn’t make much of an impact. So this time it seems that Apple will focus on ordinary consumers.

The company believes its strong branding, industrial design, and integration with the iPhone will lead people looking for new regular glasses to buy a pair from Apple instead. Apple’s existing ecosystem of more than 2 billion active devices, its global retail footprint and the promise of AI features that can help people interact with the world around them will also help.