Samsung patent reveals how users can “shazam” movie content via AR glasses

Samsung may have found a way to combine the best of both devices.

The company has issued a patent that details how users with augmented reality (AR) glasses could use them as a remote control for TV casting, switching media playback mode, and getting viewing suggestions.

The document reveals how AR glasses would include a camera that can identify the user’s “eye gaze information” and a second camera that acquires an image of the user's environment.

With one of the cameras, the AR device would be able to tell if there’s a TV in the room. Once the device identifies a TV, the head-mounted device lets the user know about it by putting a frame around it.

The user can then focus on the highlighted part so that the device can establish a connection with the TV by checking if the two devices share an account for authentication.

Once that’s done, a user is shown an interface where they can interact with the TV. The glasses would allow mirroring of the content shown on the TV or picking a movie to watch next.

The document also shows that the glasses might allow users to shift from watching certain content on TV to streaming it via the glasses through a “Continue playing in app” button.

Samsung’s patent also shows how AR glasses could extend multitasking capabilities by allowing users to watch TV content while interacting with their friends through chat.

The use of glasses could even go so far as to automatically open a menu and suggest new content to stream, as it would keep track of where a user frequently streams in their home with the help of GPS and image recognition.

According to the patent, the use of glasses could also expand to the outside world, where users would be able to “Shazam” the content they stumble across when they are unsure what kind of movie or series is being displayed.

While the shared document doesn’t guarantee that the company will implement these features in the future, considering that Samsung has been working on AR glasses, the patent may give us a glimpse into what to expect from its new devices.