The missing links between wearing a fitness watch and, well, actually staying fit are many. The phantom gym membership that I stay connected to, paying every month without going, is a testament to that. Apple’s newest gym partnership, announced Thursday, is aiming to knit the gym experience and the Apple Watch experience more closely together …

This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon. I saw a pair of smart glasses that looked almost like my own regular pair. I tried them on. I wish I had a photo to share with you, but North’s Focals 2.0 were in total stealth mode in Las Vegas …

A funny thing about Apple’s newest smart battery case for the iPhone 11 and 11 Plus: I don’t need it.  Years ago, I begged for better battery life on iPhones. Battery cases were the bulky lifeline I needed to get through a day without panic. At a big all-day show like CES in Las Vegas, a battery pack was essential. …

After reports last week of Magic Leap’s sales numbers being well below expectations, it’s perhaps not a surprise that the Florida-based augmented reality company on Tuesday announced a new version of its headset focused on business. The Magic Leap One, when it debuted in 2018, was targeted at creative professionals and even everyday people, despite its high price tag. The newly …

This story is part of The 2010s: A Decade in Review, a series on the memes, people, products, movies and so much more that have influenced the 2010s. I had a vision of the future when I was in high school in the early ’90s, and it involved a world in which we were immersed in headsets that were doorways …

I didn’t expect to cry when I stepped into a demo suite in a hotel mid-afternoon on a Thursday to try a new VR/AR headset. I rarely get emotional in demos anymore. But then I was invited to look at what appeared to be a massive 4K TV in the room I was sitting in. A TV that wasn’t there. …

For years, Snapchat’s been an app interested in pushing the boundaries of augmented reality through its camera lenses. As more AR-powered apps and headsets push into the competition, Snapchat’s parent company, Snap, has been continuing to develop its AR through artists, brands, developers and influencers who have making even more evolved AR creations, games and possibly collaborative art, too. The …

It doesn’t pay to be an early adopter. Smart glasses maker North, which developed a pair of glasses called Focals earlier this year, has just announced an updated version for 2020. That means the first Focals, which displayed notifications via a retinal-projection technology that looked like a tiny pop-up window in one eye, are being discontinued, the company says. The …

Augmented reality on phones means layering virtual things on top of real ones, but the distinctions might get harder to tell apart. An update to Google’s ARCore technology can sense depth in a room and hide virtual objects behind real ones using just a single phone camera… and the early results look promising. Apple’s newest augmented reality toolset, ARKit 3, …

Facebook’s Oculus Quest VR headset keeps getting new features. Last month, it added USB-C PC tethering for running more powerful Oculus Rift apps. Now, it can work without controllers, using the headset’s external cameras to track your finger motion and hand movement.  Earlier this fall, hand tracking was unveiled as a feature coming in early 2020. It’s part of Facebook CEO …