VMware's EMM platform now supports enterprise smart glasses

VMware announced Tuesday that it's bringing support for enterprise smart glasses to the AirWatch enterprise mobility management platform.

VMware says the addition of new smart glasses management features to AirWatch will make it easier for businesses to apply onboarding, network setup, and app deployment tools to augmented and mixed reality devices running Android.

The deal also includes partnerships between VMware AirWatch and some of the leading smart glasses vendors including APX Labs, Atheer, Intel, ODG, and VUZIX Corp. This means devices from any of these manufacturers can be fully managed alongside VMware AirWatch deployed devices.

"Having wearable management now built into the VMware AirWatch Enterprise Mobility Management platform is a huge step forward in removing barriers to large scale adoption across the type of global customers we work with, and that's paramount to not only our growth, but the growth of the entire industry," Brian Ballard, CEO of APX Labs, said in a statement.

In a separate announcement, VMware unveiled a few updates to its unified endpoint management (UEM) and enterprise BYOD security products.

With the UEM product, VMware says it's allowing for faster and more reliable security patches, OS updates, and software installations, as well as consolidated operations across devices, including those running Windows 10. The platform will support both Windows-based and Android-based IoT devices.

According to VMware, the UEM platform is the first one to unite desktop and mobile management in a single platform.

In the latest update to Workspace ONE, VMware is rolling out expanded support for multi-device BYOD for employees and contractors. This comes via real-time security features across apps and new authentication polices, including continuous authentication policy, password form fill capability, and device compliance-based conditional access.