Lens AR Smartwatch by Yuxuan Hua is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 Silver A' Design Award in Wearable Technologies Design Competition Category.
SilverWearable Technology· 2025
Lens AR Smartwatch
by Yuxuan Hua
Silver A' Design Award Winner in Wearable Technology Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #166878The Design
About Lens AR Smartwatch
Lens is an AR smartwatch for immersive outdoor adventures, blending spontaneity with simplicity. While existing AR devices like smart glasses and smartphones feel intrusive or disrupt exploration, Lens offers a seamless alternative. Worn like a watch, Lens’ AR features are available when needed, unobtrusive and always ready. Designed to be held like a traditional monocular, it unveils a new world with augmented content: identify creatures, explore new trails, or uncover constellations. Lens seamlessly merges the nostalgia of optical discovery with the thrill of modern exploration.
The Recognition
About the Silver A' Design Award
Lens AR Smartwatch is a Silver A' Design Award winner, an extraordinarily prestigious recognition granted to top-of-the-line, gorgeous, and impressive designs. Silver winners are tremendously brilliant and exceedingly creative works that illustrate the outstanding expertise, talent, and acuity of their designers. Lens AR Smartwatch is expected to be a wonderful, showpiece work that is remarkably professional and profoundly innovative. This Silver A' Design Award-winning design is a highly notable, admired invention that benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Lens AR Smartwatch is a vastly envied creation that evokes desires, introduces positive feelings, and sparks amazement and wonderment.
Where to Get It
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Design Interview
What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
The design centers around turning the everyday into something emotionally resonant. Inspired by a simple act—scooping ice cream—it aims to bring a sense of lightness and joy to an otherwise utilitarian object, reimagining the humidifier as something delightful rather than invisible.
What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
I wanted to shift perception—to create a product that didn’t just serve a function, but one that people could emotionally connect with. The focus was on soft interaction, clarity, and sensory delight.
What are your future plans for this award winning design?
We hope to continue exploring partnerships for production and distribution, and possibly expand the design language into a series of wellness-focused objects.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Lens is an AR smartwatch for immersive outdoor adventures, blending spontaneity with simplicity. Unlike intrusive AR tools like smart glasses or smartphones, Lens offers a seamless alternative. Worn like a watch, its AR features are unobtrusive and ready when needed. Designed to be held like a monocular, Lens unveils a world of augmented content, merging the nostalgia of telescopic discovery with the thrill of modern exploration.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- *Dimensions*
-Watch Diameter: 48mm (ideal for a balance of functionality and portability)
-Thickness: 20mm
-Weight: 68g - Tags
- Augmented Reality, Smartwatch, Outdoor, Monocular, AR, Wearable Technologies
- Production Technology
- Lens was designed with a focus on ergonomic comfort and seamless functionality. Crafted from aerospace-grade aluminum for durability and lightweight wear, it features advanced AR projection, a wide FOV camera for immersive visuals, and a compact LiDAR for precise spatial mapping. The quick-detach mechanism enhances versatility, while extensive prototyping and real-world testing ensured optimal performance for outdoor exploration.
- Research
- We interviewed hikers, foragers, and stargazers to uncover their main frustrations with outdoor AR apps:
1.Devices were too bulky to carry comfortably.
2.Many were too fragile for rugged environments.
3.Frequent screen interactions disrupted the flow of exploration.
And these insights guided our design:
1.A quick-detach mechanism.
2.Intuitive monocular-holding gesture for seamless AR interaction.
3.A capacitive haptic button enabling both simple and complex controls.
4.An integrated haptic motor to reduce cognitive load, letting users stay focused on their surroundings. - Inspiration
- Lens was inspired by the age-old act of sighting through telescopes, reimagined for the modern adventurer. Designed to be held like a traditional monocular, it blends the nostalgia of optical discovery with cutting-edge AR technology. Addressing the shortcomings of other AR tools - like the intrusiveness of glasses or the disruption of smartphones - Lens enhances exploration with instant, unobtrusive insights while preserving the spontaneity of outdoor adventures.
- Project Duration
- Lens began during the pandemic in 2021, driven by a desire to enhance connections and exploration during a unique time. After two years of development, it was completed in December 2023, ready to redefine how we engage with the world around us.
- Operation Flow
- Lens works seamlessly as a smartwatch and transforms into an AR monocular when removed from the wrist. Interaction is intuitive - simply hold it up to access features like navigation, identification, and stargazing. Key frames include wrist-worn mode for portability and monocular mode for immersive AR. Its unobtrusive design outperforms other tools by delivering instant insights without disrupting the natural experience, ensuring spontaneity and immersion.
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