Meta has delayed its next big thing in mixed reality glasses, code-named Phoenix, to 2027—another signal that the company is hitting a reset and is focused on getting the experience right rather than rushing to ship. An internal memo, obtained by Business Insider, said the move was due to a need for “breathing room” given tight bring-up schedules and big user experience changes. The delay moves the latest execution of what many inside the company see as a pivotal device in Meta’s roadmap for augmented reality outside the window it had previously targeted.
What Was New in Meta’s Phoenix Roadmap and Rationale
The memo was attributed to Reality Labs executives Gabriel Aul and Ryan Cairns, drawing a hard line on polish and reliability. It comes as Meta revamps its approach to spatial computing: Bloomberg reported that the company is slashing metaverse spending by as much as 30% while moving resources toward AI glasses and wearables. And that sort of rebalancing, combined with the end of Quest Pro and esteem for Quest 3 as the visionary headlining mixed reality device, helps to explain why Phoenix is being afforded extra breathing room.
According to the updated timeline, Meta doesn’t want Phoenix weighed down by the compromises that have plagued early AR/MR hardware everywhere from weight and heat management through battery life to app depth.
In other words, it’s a deliberate trade: ship later, aim for daily-use readiness.
Design Direction and the Compute Puck for Phoenix
Earlier The Information reporting called the device Phoenix (previously known as Puffin) and said it’s a goggle-like thing that now looks more like thick glasses than ski goggles.
Target weight has been quoted as low as 110 grams, a great deal lighter compared to Apple’s Vision Pro at around 600–650 grams. Even then, Phoenix’s glasses will still be heavier than Meta’s smart Ray-Bans, which weigh on the lighter side when compared to regular eyewear.
The “compute puck” is a defining architectural decision—the external module which offloads processing and thermal burden from the frames. For the same reasons, Magic Leap had its own belt-worn version of a Lightpack. A puck can accommodate a higher-power SoC and a bigger battery, for example, without the front-loaded weight against your face. The trade-off is that you’re tethered—wired or wirelessly—to a second device, and you still have to worry about the bulk in your pocket and managing cables. For Meta to get pucks right and start low-latency, reliably connecting, slimmer frames with no trade-off in capability would open up.
Horizon OS and the Software Gamble for Mixed Reality
Phoenix will likely run on Horizon OS, the platform that underpins Meta’s Quest range, based on internal discussions cited in reports. That continuity counts: It affords developers a known SDK, the potential for cross-device portability and access to Meta’s social graph and services. Anticipate significant focus on mixed reality passthrough, persistent anchoring of digital objects to real-world places and hands-first interaction—fields in which the Quest 3 has already pushed the market forward.
The larger strategic issue is whether Horizon OS can help pave the way for VR moving from “session-based” use to something more similar in permanence at least and ubiquity at most, like “ambient” AR. The everyday glasses require rapid boot, always-on voice and gesture input, and effortless notifications. If it can do those in a form you wear on your head that feels more like eyewear and less like something strapped across half of your face? That changes things.
Market Context and the Stakes for Meta’s Phoenix
Each major player is arriving at the same constraints: comfort, battery life and price. Premium devices have shown what’s possible but suffer from weight and cost. Meta’s pitch is distinct—mass-market mixed reality that undercuts high-end rigs while feeling much more wearable. Analysts from firms like IDC and CCS Insight have continued to observe that overall XR shipments are still a fraction of those for smartphones, a signal that comfort and everyday utility continue to restrain adoption.
Meta’s overall XR investment is huge, and the cumulative Reality Labs operating losses are well-documented in company filings. Which makes Phoenix an inflection point. When you couple that refocusing with a smaller form factor, if it sticks the landing and has legitimate reasons for existing beyond gaming and fitness—like productivity, or communication (that’s not phrased as a joke)—and hands-free capture, all areas where Ray-Ban’s smart glasses have already found surprisingly strong footing thanks to having an audience interested in everyday recording and AI-assisted features well before Meta jumped into the pool.
What to Watch Next as Meta Preps Phoenix for 2027
Expect to see signs of movement before anything launches: teasers about a developer kit, updates to Horizon OS that suit glasses and supply chain rumblings around microOLED displays and waveguide optics.
And industry observers will be looking at silicon options—from Qualcomm’s XR platforms to custom silicon to a hybrid approach inside the compute puck—that can balance power, latency and thermal performance.
For now, the delay indicates Meta is focusing on aligning form factor, software and use cases rather than rushing toward a ship date. If Phoenix comes lighter, cooler, and truly wear-and-forget-without-killing-your-pocket-brick-ish, it could be the moment mixed reality ceases to be a demo and becomes more of a habit-item for those that can afford it.
