Imagine being able to snap a photo of what you’re looking at without having to whip out your phone. While the concept is nothing new, and many companies such as Snap, Bose, and many more have introduced smart glasses, the RayBan Meta elevates this experience by blending classic style, hands-free functionality, and AI-powered features.
The glasses are so seamless that unless I shout “Hey Meta” at the top of my voice in public, no one will guess I’m wearing a smart glass. But do they stand the test of time? Here’s my review on the RayBan Meta glasses and what they offer- and where they fall short in delivering.
Specifications
| Specifications | Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses |
|---|---|
| Frame Style | Wayfarer, Low Bridge Fit Headliner, Skyler, Headliner |
| Frame material | Injected |
| Treatment | Transitions® |
| Product dimensions | Hinge to hinge – 130.73mm Lens height – 40.6mm Bridge width – 50 22mm Temple Length – 150mm |
| Weight | 50g |
| Sizes | 7 (XXS-XXL) |
| Bridge & nose pads | 2 (Low and High Bridge Fit) |
| Battery Life | Up to 4 hours |
| Prescription lens | Available |
| Image acquisition | 3024x4032px |
| Camera | 12MP |
| Video Acquisition | 1440×1920 Px @30 Fps |
| Speaker | 2 Custom-Built Speaker Open Ear |
| Microphone | Custom 5 Mic Array |
| Controls | TouchVoice(2)Assistant type – Meta(3) |
| Battery | Rechargeable 4 Hours Single Charge(4) |
| Water Resistant | IPX4 |
| Memory | 32GB Flash Storage 500+ Photos, 100+ 30s Videos |
| Wifi | Wifi 6 Certified |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.2 |
| OS compatibility | IOS 14.4/ ANDROID 10 MINIMUM |
| Price | Starting at $299 |
Design and Comfort
The glasses are a standard Wayfarer shape, one that I already own from Ray-Ban without the “smart” features. While they do weigh more than a standard pair of glasses, they are surprisingly comfortable to wear for longer periods of time. I tested out the Wayfarer frame with graphite glass, which can be used outdoors as sunglasses as well. But there are three styles of frames available with many different colored frames, lens transparencies, and tint options. The lenses can also be made into a prescription if you are in the -6 to +4 range.
The camera is equipped with 12MP that takes pictures of resolution 3024 x 4032 and videos of 1376 x 1824 and 30fps. It sits on either side of the frame with an LED that turns on while recording, enabling others around you to know the recording is on. The storage is also a whopping 32GB for all the pictures and videos the glasses will record.
The right arm supports a touchpad with a tap-to-play function and a volume slider. Tapping on the slider and holding it can start playing music from Spotify or Apple Music, and tapping with two fingers answers phone calls. The speakers are located near my ears, right under the arm.
There’s a button on the top right arm of the glasses that takes a picture when I tap it, and records a video with a long press. All this data is sent to the Meta View app automatically when the glasses are put back in the case for charging or can be done manually while wearing the glasses. Although the glasses are splash-resistant, I would keep them safe on a rainy day.
Battery and Charging
The glasses come with a charging case that looks like a sunglass cover, and the tan leather case looks identical to the cases for RayBan glasses (smart or not), with added battery backup. The case provides eight full charges and a total battery of 32 hours, and the contact pins on the bridge charge the battery from within the case.
The battery itself is a drawback since it lasts me about half a day, even though the charging takes less than an hour. Turning off the “Hey Meta” in the settings and using the button to take pictures and videos has been better for the battery life, but still not as great. I can still use them as regular sunglasses towards the end of the day, but without any of the smart features. For people with prescription lenses, charging the glasses after a few hours is not possible, which is a huge drawback.
The setup is done via the Meta View app by holding down a button on the back of the charging case. The pairing takes about 5 minutes and needs a Meta account (I used my existing Facebook account; however, an existing Instagram account also works).
Pros and Cons
| Pros of the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses | Cons of the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses |
|---|---|
| Video stabilization is good. | AI features are limited and don’t allow for integrations with Siri or Google Assistant for tasks such as making calls. |
| The picture and video quality are good. | Lacks precision when used for editing. |
| Audio quality is great for music and calls. | Framing images is a pain. |
| Livestreaming is available. | Limited platforms for live streaming. |
| Supports a five-mic array for recording. | Does not support FaceTime calls. |
| Available in multiple styles, lens transparencies, and colors. | Video recording is only up to a minute. |
| Charging case is stylish, portable, and easy to use. | Calls, videos, and live streaming drain the battery life significantly. |
| Importing photos and videos is very simple. | Battery lasts about half a day which is especially not good for people who wear prescription lenses and have to take them off for charging. |
| LED indicator when recording is very subtle. |
See It, Save It
The thing about capturing memories is that I need to whip out my phone every time, and by that time, the moment is often gone. The best part about these glasses is that they eliminate the hassle and can easily take pictures and videos up to a minute with just a tap of the button or by saying a command, “Hey Meta, take a photo/video”.
Having said that, framing the images is not as easy as looking at the object. The images were often shifted a bit to the left in the final shot, which made me almost look toward the left and past the object in order to center it in the frame.
Since the maker is Meta, the photos and videos are in a vertical resolution, perfect to post on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. The stabilization and dim light photos are also decent. The video recording is something I would’ve liked to be longer than a minute, but they are great for capturing little moments throughout the day and making memories.
These can also be used to live stream on Instagram for up to 30 minutes and for WhatsApp and Messenger calls. However, FaceTime isn’t supported yet. The white LED lights up when recording, and the camera also makes a shutter sound, which are both not as noticeable. I don’t know how I feel about this entire concept yet. While it’s great, it can also be very intrusive and creepy if people use it for the wrong reasons.
Editing these photos and videos is mostly automated, with a few transitions and 21 pre-generated music clips available. I also created a video by combining up to 10 photos and videos into a 30-second montage. Though it supports basic editing, for a more “reel” worthy edit, I would not rely on the glasses and move to a more advanced software such as CapCut.
Audio Quality
The glasses sync to the Meta View app on Android or iOS devices and can play music, acting as Bluetooth headphones. The audio quality is decent without much audio bleed, which is great since people around me can’t hear the conversations while I’m taking calls. It does make it look like I’m talking to myself, though, which looks a little silly.
The speakers can’t be compared to those of good earbuds, particularly in terms of bass. The audio also gets diluted in a noisy environment, but the five-mic array microphones are great for calls, and they also create spatial audio while recording videos.
AI Capabilities
Much like Siri and Alexa, the glasses give a generative response to questions asked, such as “Hey Meta, how’s the weather?”. The problem with Siri is the same as with Meta in that the glasses need to be prompted with “Hey Meta,” which gets annoying for an ongoing conversation; however, this has been remedied in a new update.
They are also equipped with “multi-modal” AI, which comes into play when asked questions like, “Hey Meta, what am I looking at?”. Essentially, this requires the glasses to see and hear in order to generate information, identify objects, and translate text.
This is still in beta at the time of writing, and AI features are only available in the US, Canada, Australia, France, Italy, Ireland, and Spain. The AI plus camera features are only available in the US, Canada, and Australia. People in other countries will have to wait to test out this feature.
This is extremely helpful, but also not perfect in the sense that I used it to read me a book as an audiobook, and it skipped some words. Where it has been extremely useful is scanning a restaurant menu and finding vegan options, and also summarizing a piece of text real fast.
Recent Updates:
- Real-time language translations are now available; however, the glasses can only translate between English, Spanish, Italian, and French. It can either be heard through the speakers in the glasses or come as a transcript on your phone’s Meta View app.
- An integration with Be My Eyes enables the blind or people with low vision to connect a call with someone wearing glasses with normal vision, and they can tell them what the other person is looking at.
- We can now preview the photos we take with the glasses on an Apple Watch immediately.
- A ‘remind me’ feature lets me tell the glasses to set reminders that come via my phone. It also reminds me of the things I’m seeing, like a parking spot where I parked my car, and it will describe the place when I head back.
- Integration with Shazam lets the glasses identify songs playing in the background.
- Different AI voices are now available, such as Kristen Bell’s and John Cena’s. Imagine having Gossip Girl as your AI buddy.
- Barcode scanning is now possible with the glasses.
Price and Availability
The Meta RayBan smartglasses are available on RayBan’s and Meta’s official websites and start at $299, with different styles and colors influencing their price. The prescription lenses can increase the cost anywhere from $160 to $300.
They are currently available in 15 countries: the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Australia.
Final Verdict
The RayBan Meta smart glasses combine sleek design and impressive tech, but fall short of delivering their USP, capturing memories at the moment. Due to its slightly off-set camera angle and a very short battery life, the convenience I was expecting took a hit.
They are great for tech enthusiasts, content creators, and frequent travelers since they capture up to 10-second videos and make a memory haul without the restrictions of pulling out a phone or a camera. They also eliminate the need for me to carry a pair of sunglasses and headphones since they’re both built-in.
The stylish yet classic Wayfarer look blends everyday style with AI capabilities; however, I would love a longer battery life because, let’s be honest, I’m not gonna carry a spare just to use when one runs out of battery.
