See Apple’s next product: Hololens-style Smart Glasses.

Smartphone giants Apple are prepping a new line of product to hit stores soon. Apple is working on a pair of augmented reality glasses, according to the latest reports.

An employee at famous German lens maker Carl Zeiss confirmed the partnership at last week’s CES tech show in Las Vegas, according to well-known tech blogger Robert Scoble.

AR differs from virtual reality in that it overlays digital graphics on top of a real-world view.

The most well-known example of AR is the Pokemon Go mobile game, which enables players to catch virtual critters in real-world settings.

The best known AR headset currently on offer is Microsoft ‘s HoloLens – although the discontinued Google Glass also made use of the technology. After quizzing employees as to why this was the case and suggesting that it was because “Tim Cook didn’t let you”, he said that Zeiss employees around him “smiled nervously”.

“A Zeiss employee confirmed the rumors that Apple and Carl Zeiss AG are working on a light pair of augmented reality/mixed reality glasses that may be announced this year,” wrote Scoble.

“I thought it was next year but now that I saw this I believe it will happen this year.

“And that explains why there was no augmented reality in Zeiss’s booth even though it was right in the middle of the AR area.”

While it may be a bit of a stretch to treat this as a solid confirmation of a partnership with the Cupertino brand, it was reported in November that Apple was working on a pair of AR smart glasses.

“AR can be really great, and we have been and continue to invest a lot in this,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook .

“We are high on AR for the long run. We think there are great things for customers and a great commercial opportunity.” A finished device was not expected until 2018, but Scoble now believes that Apple may reveal a product in collaboration with Zeiss this year.

Carl Zeiss is one of the oldest optics manufacturers in the world and is well known for producing lens for glasses, cameras and telescopes.

It is currently designing the optical components for NASA’s James Webb Telescope, which is set to replace the Hubble Space Telescope in 2018.

Last year, Zeiss launched the One Plus virtual reality headset.