I first saw people using the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses at a press event a few years ago, and I will be honest, I thought it was a ridiculous concept. Taking photos with your glasses seemed like a need only James Bond or complete creeps would need, and I couldn’t imagine any sort of quality coming from a sunglass-camera. I am astonished to report that I was completely wrong, and not only do the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses bring fairly high-quality photos, but I have found them genuinely useful on all fronts since I got them.
Let’s talk about how I ended up reviewing the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses in the first place: the fit. When they came into CGM, we received the Headliner sunglass frames in Shiny Black, and they were the standard size. As I mentioned, I had no interest in these glasses, and several reviewers had their eyes set on them. The issue was that the standard, high-bridge fit of the Headliner frames is pretty small overall, and they also looked very feminine. Alas, feeling a bit like Cinderella, I took them on, as they were a perfect fit.
It is important to note that the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses come in a variety of frames to choose from, which also range in price from about $369 to $459. Some frames may come in different colours or transparencies, too, which also affect the price. You can find clear lenses, prescription lenses, polarized and more, and the same goes for the frames. I am personally a fan of the Dusty Red Polarized Headliner frames—they just look cool.
“The Ray-Ban Meta Glasses startled me more than once when I forgot my glasses could talk!”
Personally, the Headliner frames fit well, but they feel a bit tight on my head, and I am not particularly large. The frame is a hard, shiny plastic, which is susceptible to fingerprints, but a trusty cloth is included to keep both the frames and lenses clean. There is a small but classy Ray-Ban logo on each arm, a nearly invisible camera on one side and a light on the other. The Ray-Ban Meta glasses feature a button on the right arm for capture, sensors on the same side for touch control and a button on the inside of the frames to turn them off.
On the bridge of the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses you will find the charging sensors which connect to the stylish case. The case I received was a brown, faux leather finish, with a subtle pairing button on the back, USB-C charging port on the bottom and an indicator light on the front which will tell you the battery life of the case: green for fully charged, orange for not fully charged, orange blinking light for low battery, red blinking light for charging error. It will also glow blue while in pairing mode.
The only issue I came into with the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses was during the initial pairing process. For whatever reason, the device really wanted to fight me when it came to pairing my Facebook Messenger and Messages. It was hours of asking me to re-pair the device to my OnePlus 12, which meant re-connecting every account. It was tedious and frustrating and in the end I could not get it to work, and I gave up, reaching out to the company for help.
That is, until I left them in my purse out of the case. Two days later, I picked the glasses back up, and suddenly everything was working fine. I didn’t ask questions. When I switched phones—as I do a lot in this industry—and had to do the pairing process all over again, and I was dreading it, but the second time, everything worked fine again. I will chalk it up to a fluke and call it a day!
Now that things have been up and running consistently, I have really enjoyed my time with the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses. I can’t say I use them for many photos, but I found the ultra-wide 12MP camera sufficient for sharing photos/videos with friends, including using Meta to send them without ever needing to open my phone. Simply say “Hey Meta, send last photo to…” and it works away. This only works for videos 15 seconds or less, however.
One thing I wish the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses would work on is the IP-rating. Currently, they are IPx4, meaning only water-resistant, for things like light rain. If these were better waterproofed, it would be a game changer. Imagine being able to go to the beach or pool and take photos and videos without having to have your phone near the water. I was recently on a OnePlus Offshore cruise and I wished that the Ray-Ban Meta glasses were able to capture all our water-filled moments!
“These sunglasses really felt like a gimmick to me, until I started using them regularly.”
I occasionally had issues with sending messages hands free, as I have several family members with the same last name. I found it struggled sending messages to my son, who uses Messenger Kids, so I think there is a bit of a disconnect there. Being able to have Meta read my messages out loud while I am driving or out was great. However, when out with friends, it would get overwhelming having my glasses trying to read messages while I am talking or trying to listen to someone. The Ray-Ban Meta Glasses startled me more than once when I forgot my glasses could talk!
I was also shocked at the range the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses have. I left my phone on one side of our office—yes I was testing them indoors—and walked to the other side through five large walls and my music kept going. The touch controls on the side are also incredibly responsive, allowing me to play, pause, skip and change the volume of my music.
I also found them useful when I was driving with my kids in the car. I could listen to podcasts I may not want them to hear, while they listened to the radio. I could still hear everyone, but the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses tuned out the radio and allowed me to hear what I was playing instead.
The Ray-Ban Meta Glasses are also able to describe what I see or identify objects, and you can use Meta AI to do a lot, but again, I am not a huge AI user. It was a lot like having a Google or Alexa app without needing to pull out my phone, which is a nice bonus.
Where I think the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses thrive is in its audio capabilities. Having the ability to play music from the arms of the glasses without bothering those around me was awesome. They took away the need for an additional accessory like headphones or earbuds, and the sound quality was surprisingly good, considering it was coming from my sunglasses.
All of these features do come at the cost of the battery, however. It took about 3.5 hours of constant audio playback for the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses to die completely. This isn’t amazing, but they would absolutely last for a walk or drive, but not to be your primary listening device long-term. The Ray-Ban Meta Glasses were also able to charge from 5% to 40% in 15 minutes, if you need to charge them quick on the go. The good news, though, is that they are still sunglasses, even when they aren’t charged!
These sunglasses really felt like a gimmick to me, until I started using them regularly. Though there are still some kinks when it comes to pairing, and they tend to interrupt when you are having a conversation, the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses have some genuinely useful real-world use, and bring surprisingly good audio and photo capabilities to your sunglasses. Who could ask for more?
