Are AR glasses for swimming legit? This pair I tested helped me ‘hack’ my workouts

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Form Smart Swim 2 Pro is available for $329, with the premium subscription for $119/year or $15/month.
• The included solution keeps the goggles fog free, and the annual subscription provides extensive training and analysis features.
• Peripheral visibility is limited, the glasses are rather expensive, and the anti-fog spray needs to be applied before each swim.

I’ve been exercising since I was a young boy in the 80s, and never did I think I’d be running, cycling, and swimming with eyewear that displays personalized fitness data right in front of my eyes. 

Well, those days are here, and in my opinion, it’s awesome. Makers of premium swim tech, Form, recently released its latest generation of AR (augmented reality) swimming goggles, the Form Smart Swim 2 Pro, and I’ve been using them in the pool and at one of our local lakes here in Washington over the past year.

Also: I tested smart goggles and they have a game-changing feature for swimmers

I tested these goggles’ successors: the Smart Swim 2 goggles in early 2024, and there have been several software and hardware improvements released in that time. First and foremost: the Smart Swim 2 Pro is the first pair of swimming goggles made with Gorilla Glass 3 to stay scratch-free for years. 

The last generation goggles were plastic with a factory applied anti-fog coating so you never had to do anything to them to keep them clear. However, over extended periods of time and heavy usage, the plastic could scratch and detract from the AR experience. 

The new Smart Swim 2 Pro with Gorilla Glass 3 lenses requires application of an anti-fog spray before each swim to keep them clear. Form provides enough solution for up to 175 applications, but then provides the simple formula (the right mixture of 75% water and 25% baby shampoo — available at your local drug store) so that you can make your own spray when you run out.

Matthew Miller/ZDNET

Form includes five arched nose bridges to fit every face shape, and you can even flip these over if you want the AR view, right side by default, to appear in front of your left eye. The glass lenses have a mirror coating under the top layer of glass and block 98% of harmful UV rays. The Smart Swim 2 Pro has an advertised battery life of 14 hours, and that matches my experience during testing. 

While there is a subscription available, one month of premium service is available for free, you can use the core features of the glasses without a sub. Core features include the free smartphone application (available for iOS and Android) that let you set up the AR display on the goggles, the optical heart rate sensor, automatic stroke detection, sharing with services like Strava and TrainingPeaks, and open water swim tracking with support for connected GPS sports watches.

Matthew Miller/ZDNET

If you want to take advantage of coaching and powerful workouts, the $99 annual subscription is worth the price. It provides guided workouts, visual coaching in the glasses, open water swimming digital compass, training plans, and more. The HeadCoach Plans capability creates personalized training plans based on your own swim metrics and adjust based on your swimming routine.

Also: I finally found bone conduction headphones that stay on while swimming (and they sound great)

I love the idea behind Smart Set since swimming is not a part of my regular exercise routine. With the Smart Swim 2 Pro I can just jump in the pool and start swimming, then Form uses AI to analyze the swim and creates a workout structure you can then use to build workouts that for the future.

Matthew Miller/ZDNET

The data that appears in the Form app on your phone is impressive. It includes details on your form, distance, pace, stroke rate, and much more. Data collected by Form shows that premium subscribers improved by five seconds over 100 meters in just four months, so there are clearly measurable benefits to having coaching available to you. Just like the Engo PC glasses that improved my running performance, having the key metrics right in front of you without any distractions is vital to improving performance when seconds count.

I was worried a bit about the goggles being tough to use while swimming, but Form has perfected the user experience with two-button controls on one side and seamless connectivity to your smartphone and sports watch. The Smart Swim 2 Pro is very easy to adjust for the perfect fit and my swimming experience has changed forever thanks to the goggles. 

Also: These XR glasses gave me a 200-inch screen to work with – and now I might ditch my monitors

One thing to note is that with the A/R lens and design, you have limited peripheral vision, so open-water swimmers will appreciate the directional guidance, but may lament the visibility. Since pool swimmers are not as focused on visibility beyond their lanes, this won’t be an issue for most swimmers.

ZDNET’s buying advice

As a person who is very competitive and enjoys participating in a range of sports, AR wearables fascinate me and motivate me to improve. Form’s Smart Swim 2 Pro goggles are a great example of this, and the first to offer Gorilla Glass 3 lenses with advanced software to track your swimming progress both in the pool and in open water. 

The negatives include the cost and a potential loss of peripheral visibility, but they aren’t dealbreakers for me. The goggles’ benefits ultimately outweigh them, and I’m more motivated to swim than ever before.