Silver Wearable Technologies Design · 2025
Lens AR Smartwatch
by Yuxuan Hua
- A' Design Award 2025 Silver Winner in Wearable Technologies Design
- Awarded April 15, 2025
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 71,490
- Verification code F5FF47A563 · Verify this award
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.
Yuxuan Hua's Lens AR Smartwatch emerges from the contemporary discourse surrounding wearable technology design, where the imperative to balance technological capability with human-centered aesthetics has generated increasingly sophisticated formal solutions. This visualization presents the device through a carefully orchestrated composition that reveals multiple perspectives simultaneously, allowing viewers to appreciate both the interactive display interface and the considered industrial design of the case back with its concentric circular patterns suggesting precision engineering. The choice of complementary strap colorways in muted sage and warm coral demonstrates an understanding of how wearable devices function as personal accessories that must harmonize with diverse wardrobes and personal expressions, moving beyond the monochromatic conventions that dominated early smartwatch design. The interface graphics displayed on the active screen suggest augmented reality navigation capabilities, with forest pathway imagery overlaid with directional indicators and distance metrics that speak to outdoor adventure applications while maintaining visual clarity through thoughtful information hierarchy. The translucent notification banner floating above the pathway image demonstrates interface layering techniques that preserve contextual awareness while delivering timely information. Particularly noteworthy is the material dialogue established between the woven textile straps and the machined aluminum cases, creating a tactile and visual conversation between soft organic forms and precise geometric volumes. The curving, looping bands suggest comfort and flexibility while the circular watch faces communicate completeness and continuous engagement. The visualization technique itself, employing floating presentation against a gradient field, reflects contemporary product communication strategies that prioritize material presence and formal appreciation over contextual placement. One might consider how the device mediates between digital information streams and embodied physical experience, serving as a threshold object that translates abstract data into actionable spatial guidance while maintaining an aesthetic presence worthy of constant wear.
Press Kit
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Colors of Lens AR Smartwatch
Get Lens AR Smartwatch
Design Interview about Lens AR Smartwatch
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.
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.
We hope to continue exploring partnerships for production and distribution, and possibly expand the design language into a series of wellness-focused objects.
The full process—from ideation to prototyping and final visuals—spanned roughly 2 to 3 months. Much of that time was spent refining form, interaction, and tone.
It was an independent exploration—sparked by a moment of inspiration and developed into a full concept. I wanted to see if an object as ordinary as a humidifier could carry emotional weight.
At the moment, it's a concept, but we’re open to licensing or co-developing it with the right partner.
The desire to challenge overlooked categories—things that are often purely functional and hidden in plain sight. I wanted to show that even these objects can be beautiful, comforting, and worth celebrating.
I drew subtle inspiration from minimalist Japanese products and everyday rituals—particularly how MUJI and Nendo approach simplicity, warmth, and utility.
People who value emotional connection in everyday objects—homeowners, renters, or anyone looking to bring a little softness and personality into their living spaces.
Its emotional narrative and form language. Most humidifiers are utilitarian and anonymous—this one invites interaction and joy, while maintaining function.
“Melt” came from both its visual language and emotional tone—soft, fluid, gentle. It reflects both the design inspiration (ice cream) and the product’s calming, ambient nature.
SolidWorks for form development, KeyShot for visualization, and a mix of sketching and physical prototyping to explore interaction.
The cap design—it mimics an ice cream scoop, shaping a gentle channel for water to flow in easily. It’s form, function, and story in one gesture.
It was a solo concept, but I gathered feedback from peers with experience in manufacturing and marketing to shape its viability.
Technology supports the experience subtly—automated mist control, quiet operation, and sensor-based responsiveness. It’s there to serve, not distract.
Research focused on user interviews and behavior observation—how people interact with wellness products, what frustrates them, and what brings them comfort. The insights were more emotional than analytical.
Balancing emotional expression with functional clarity—making sure the form didn’t compromise usability, and vice versa. Also, conveying the concept’s tone through static visuals was a creative challenge.
It felt like the right moment to share the project more widely—to see how it resonated outside my immediate design circle, and to celebrate a piece that was deeply personal.
That even small, personal ideas can have big emotional impact. I learned to trust my instincts, and to communicate a product’s emotional value as clearly as its functional benefits.
Just that design doesn’t always have to be loud to be meaningful. Sometimes, the quietest ideas are the ones that stay with people the longest.