Are Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses Worth the Hype?

Virtual reality (VR) is finally reaching a point of mainstream appeal, and augmented reality (AR) isn’t far behind. Products like the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are leading the charge, but are they worth it quite yet?

Ray-Ban and Meta’s first connected glasses failed to make much of a splash when they launched in 2021. Two years later, the companies followed them up with the more functional Meta Smart Glasses to largely better reviews. Before you spend your hard-earned money on a pair, though, it’s worth asking what makes them special.

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses: Pros

Smart glasses are some of the best tech gifts you can buy right now, depending on who you’re buying them for. Ray-Ban’s products, in particular, are worth considering for a few reasons.

Comfort and Aesthetics

Some of the best features of Ray-Ban’s Meta Smart Glasses are those that don’t stand out. The spectacles look like a normal pair of sunglasses, so you won’t draw stares while wearing them, which can’t be said for the ill-fated Google Glass of yesteryear.

Similarly, they feel fairly comfortable, too. Users say they may be a bit heavier than standard frames, but the weight isn’t enough to bother them while using. They’re light enough that you’ll likely get used to any extra heft after wearing them a few times, which hasn’t always been the case with this tech. The Apple Vision Pro weighs over a pound, for example.

Picture and Sound Quality

The smart spectacles’ audio and video quality are also impressive for their sleek design and small form factor. The frames boast a 12MP camera, which can take pictures with a 3024 x 4032 resolution. That puts it on par with many smartphones, though high-end phones and newer flagship models can still outperform it.

Videos are a similar story. Ray-Ban’s smart glasses can record in 1080p at 30 frames per second (fps), which may not be quite as much as your phone but is still a high-quality video.

The tiny speakers sitting near your ears in the frames are likewise better than you may expect. They’re loud and high-quality enough to replace earbuds without you needing to plug your ears and block the outside world.

Convenient Features

As you’d expect from a pair of smart glasses, the Ray-Ban and Meta collaboration comes with some useful features, too. Older options like Google Glass failed to catch on outside of niche use cases because they didn’t offer a huge value statement. These may be a different story.

While the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses don’t have any AR overlays, they do have handy voice controls. There’s also a physical button you can use to take videos and photos if you’d rather not talk to your apparel. On top of recording things without needing to take out your phone, the glasses can also upload them to social media automatically — you can even livestream with them.

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses: Cons

Of course, the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are not perfect, either. As impressive as some features are, you should also be aware of a few downsides.

Disappointing AI Functionality

One of the most common complaints with Ray-Ban’s smart glasses is that they could be smarter. While there is a built-in AI assistant using Meta’s Llama 3 model, it’s not as versatile as some would hope.

You can use the AI to ask questions about what you see, call contacts and handle basic media controls. However, its replies are often short, and it can take a while to process the requests. AI takes a lot of computing power to run. Newer smartphones usually have specialized AI hardware to support it in a small package, but the smart spectacles lack the same onboard power.

More advanced generative AI functionality is still in beta or not available yet. Meta plans to roll out additional features down the road, but for now, the glasses aren’t as smart as your phone.

Limited Battery Life

There are also battery concerns with the smart spectacles. With moderate usage, the glasses will last for roughly four hours. That’s fine for your daily commute or a quick afternoon out, but it leaves something to be desired if you’d like to wear them all day.

Regularly listening to music or taking videos will drain the battery even faster. Consequently, the frames are limited for streaming and social media use, which is arguably what they’re best at. They do recharge in their case quickly, but this means you need to take another item with you while you’re out and about.

Cost

Finally, there’s the issue of price. Ray-Ban’s Meta Smart Glasses start at $299 and get more expensive if you want prescription lenses. While this does make them cheaper than other smart headsets on the market — and many designer frames can easily cost more — it’s not exactly affordable.

The price tag would be less of an issue if the product did more. For now, though, some may consider $300 a bit steep for something that’s more of a convenience than a game-changing piece of technology. Still, some people will find the music and social media functions nice enough to warrant the cost.

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses vs. Apple Vision Pro

AR and VR fans may be torn between the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses and something more conventional like the Apple Vision Pro. Which of the two is better depends on what you want.

Ray-Ban’s smart glasses are certainly a better deal. Even though $299 may be a lot, it’s nowhere near the $3,500 price tag the Apple Vision Pro commands. It’s worth noting that Apple’s headset does a lot more than the Meta Smart Glasses, but few people can reasonably afford to spend so much on a headset they likely don’t need.

The Apple Vision Pro has the advantage of far greater functionality. You can watch movies, play games and do a lot of work in them, all while getting an experience you couldn’t otherwise enjoy. In that way, they’re more useful than Ray-Ban’s smart spectacles, but they’re also clunkier and less convenient to wear outside the home.

Overall, go with the Vision Pro if you’d prefer a true VR or AR experience. Stick with the Meta Smart Glasses if you only need some media conveniences.

Ray-Ban’s Meta Smart Glasses Are Cool But Imperfect

So, are the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses worth the hype? It depends on your budget and your needs. They’re great for frequent social media users or those wanting to listen to music on their commute without needing earbuds. For others, though, their current functionality may not be enough to justify the cost.