Snapchat appears to be preparing to jump out of app land and into the hardware market, as the company has just joined the Bluetooth Special Interest Group.
As the Financial Times reports, membership to the wireless standard group is essential for any company that wants to add Bluetooth functionality to its physical products. This plays nicely into rumors from earlier this year that suggested Snapchat was building a secret hardware lab with former Nokia and Logitech staff.
AR goggles would be a good match for Snapchat, which already has 150m daily active users glued to their smartphone screens by letting them add animated filters to their self-destructing images and videos.
The AR competition
Snapchat's also been snapping up staff from Oculus, BB-8 Star Wars toy makers Sphero and home security specialists Ring and Canary. Each, either making use of headsets or interactive video, seem to line up with AR goggle rumors.
Such a headset would offer Snapchat's army of media partners and advertisers a quirky new alternative platform to push their wares through, mixing digital promotions with the real world through tech-filled lenses.
However, dedicated AR hardware has a hit and miss track record. Google Glass never really got off the ground, while we're still waiting to see just how successful Microsoft's promising upcoming HoloLens headset will be.
- Hands-on review: Microsoft Hololens
