Ray-Ban Meta Glasses First Impressions: Live streaming in style

The Ray-Ban Meta Glasses may not be the AR-equipped spectacles of tomorrow, but they offer a unique way to capture precious moments from your POV without needing to reach for a smartphone.

Introduction

Meta and Ray-Ban have revealed their second-gen smart glasses dubbed the (not-so-catchy) Ray-Ban Meta Glasses. 

Designed as a follow-up to the Ray-Ban Stories, the camera-equipped smart glasses boast a range of improvements from an upgraded 12MP camera to louder, more bassy audio output, as well as new smart features and, importantly, a much more comfortable design. 

Though they’re a far cry from the AR glasses of tomorrow, there’s still a lot to like about the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses, as I found out during a hands-on session ahead of the big reveal.

While I’m not yet ready to deliver my final verdict, here are my initial thoughts on the new Ray-Ban Meta Glasses.  

Design

• Signature Ray-Ban design
• New Headliner style
• Semi-transparent finish

Being a product collaboration with stylish glasses maker Ray-Ban, it should come as no surprise that the new Ray-Ban Meta Glasses come in the brand’s signature big-lens Wayfarer style. But what is new to this year’s collection – and Ray-Ban in general – is the Headliner style, with a more rounded shape and high-hinge design.

Regardless of the finish you get, you’ll find all the staples of Ray-Ban design including the signature logo on the arms of the frame and on the lenses themselves. There’s also a new Wayfarer Large size this time around to help accommodate more head sizes than its comparatively narrow predecessor.

There’s a new stylish semi-transparent finish that shows off the techy internals of the glasses, available in both Caramel and Jeans finishes, along with the signature Revel Black colourway available in both shiny and matte finishes. Combined with a range of lens options – including transition lenses – available via the Ray-Ban Remix online storefront, there are over 150 potential combinations to choose from. 

The first thing I noticed when donning the new specs during my hands-on session was just how much more comfortable they are compared to the Ray-Ban Stories, which I found would pinch my head, particularly behind the ears, with very little give in the arms.

The frame is much less rigid this time around, with enough give to cater for more head sizes and slowly mould to the shape of your head as regular sunglasses do. There was less pressure on the bridge of my nose compared to the first-gen specs too, with a more balanced weight distribution. 

Importantly, the smart glasses are water resistant with a IPX-4 rating, so you don’t need to take them off if it starts raining. 

Camera

• Upgraded 12MP ultrawide camera
• New livestream capabilities
• Bigger, brighter recording LED

Fundamentally, the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses share the same aims as its predecessor – photography and audio playback – though there are various improvements to both elements to improve the experience on offer.

Let’s start with the camera. In place of the 4MP ultrawide of its predecessor you’ll find an upgraded 12MP ultrawide lens capable of taking both photos and 1080p video. It works in a similar way, with a press or hold of the arm-mounted button to take a photo or a video. 

You can also use Facebook Assistant to activate the camera, and with improved integration with Meta-owned apps like WhatsApp, Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and Threads, you can send recently captured photos and videos to your friends by voice without needing to interact with your phone at all. 

The lens boasts improved electronic image stabilisation to deliver smoother video, allowing you to record relatively stable videos when running, and videos are now captured in portrait orientation – much better for sharing on the likes of TikTok and Instagram Stories compared to the square-ish capture of its predecessor. 

That tight integration with Meta services also allows you to use the smart glasses for livestreaming on Instagram and Facebook, with users able to seamlessly switch between the phone camera and POV-style glasses cam with a double-press of the side-mounted button. It’ll be a real boon for creators, providing hands-free POV action great for things like performances and tutorials. 

There’s also a boosted 5 microphones, up from 3 on its predecessor, to not only capture better audio for hands-free calling but 3D-like audio capture when recording videos, adding a deeper level of immersion to recorded clips that you can’t easily get from most smartphone microphones. 

The 32GB of onboard storage should be enough to capture 8x more photos and videos – around 500 photos and 100 videos – before you hit full storage. That’ll be more than enough for most, and with a quick sync of the Meta View app for iOS and Android, you’re free to continue snapping away to your heart’s content. 

Privacy is a huge factor when wearing a discreet camera on your face, which is why the LED light is bigger and brighter than its predecessor to make it obvious to those around you when you’re recording or snapping a photo. 

What’s more, a hidden depth sensor can tell if someone is trying to cover the LED with tape, and it won’t record or take photos until it’s removed. That should help alleviate some of that potential awkwardness that those around you might feel when you’re wearing the smart specs. 

Audio

• Louder, bassier audio output
• New auto play/pause tech
• Less noise leakage

Meta is claiming ‘best in class’ open-air audio with the new Ray-Ban Meta Glasses, and while that’s hard to verify based on about 45 minutes of use, I will say that there’s a notable improvement to overall audio performance.

Compared to the Ray-Ban Stories, I found the audio to be not only louder (Meta claims up to 50% louder) but fuller with more notable levels of bass. It’ll never replicate the sound from a proper pair of over-ear cans, but it’s decent for the open-air design of the specs. 

Sound leakage should be less of a problem this time too, with an improved design that minimises just how much those around you can hear. Don’t get me wrong, those around you will still hear a whisper of music when listening at top volumes, but at more comfortable levels (around the 70% mark) it was barely audible in the demo area. 

I will say that I was in a fairly loud room though, so it’ll be interesting to see how it performs in quieter environments.  

There’s also a new sensor within the smart glasses that can detect when they’re worn and when they’re taken off to play and pause audio output accordingly, and an upgraded touch sensor should make swipe inputs on the arm easier to perform too. 

Battery life

• Redesigned charging case
• Stylish, compact design
• Holds up to 8 recharges

Charging the first-gen Ray-Ban Stories was a bit of a headache with a bulky case and hit-and-miss connection points, so it’s great to see the two companies take it more seriously with the newer smart glasses. 

First off, there’s a new case that’s much smaller and lighter than the comparatively chunky case of the first-gen smart glasses. It’s also a completely different style, sporting a similar design to that of Ray-Ban’s regular glasses, complete with a tanned leather finish that helps sell the premium nature of the specs.

Despite this, the case can hold more charges than its predecessor, with the newer case able to provide 8 charges before needing a top-up, up from just 3 recharges. There’s even a cool LED light disguised as a regular button that’ll change colour depending on how much battery is remaining.

The contact points on the glasses points have also moved from the stems to the bridge of the glasses, which should provide a more secure connection. It should also allow for easier connection, as one of the biggest frustrations with the first-gen specs was getting them into the correct position for charging.

Both the glasses and case are smarter this time too, with the case now able to stop charging the glasses once they hit 100%, and the glasses will automatically power off after a few minutes of inactivity too. 

This, combined with around 6 hours of mixed-use per charge from the glasses, should hopefully see a big increase in overall battery life with fewer charges of the case, but I’ll verify that in the full review. 

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