A small tech startup has launched what might be the first pair of smart glasses that people may actually wear and use.

Looking exactly like a standard pair of spectacles, the makers have downplayed the technology aspect of their Focals range and have kept both usage and display minimalistic. They say the design is based on good-looking frames, with vision correction if needed, and offered in thousands of colour, style and size combinations.

The visual display, too has also been pared right back. “Your line of sight is valuable real estate - we knew from the outset that we couldn’t just slap a phone screen in front of your eye,” CEO Stephen Lake said in a blog announcing the launch. It’s also designed to minimise on-screen time. Interactions are short - five to fifteen seconds, according to Lake - and intended to get you back to whatever you were doing as fast as possible. “It doesn’t take over what you’re seeing or the world around you. Instead it features small, utilitarian pieces of information that float an arm’s length in front of you that you can view, act on or dismiss.”

Initially, Focals will include text messaging, a calendar, turn-by-turn directions, weather, Amazon Alexa and Uber, but will expand to other applications in future. The spectacles are paired with a wearable finger ring called Loop which features a four-directional joystick that can be operated without lifting the hand.

North, which used to be called Thalmic Labs and has so far raised US$140 million from investors including Amazon, is taking orders for Focals, which it is selling for US$1000 a pair. As personalised fitting in a showroom is required, they are currently only available in Brooklyn and Toronto.