Even Non-Techy Folks Will Love the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses

When I was in high school, I was very into photography and music — so much so that one project my senior year consisted of using music lyrics to inspire photographs I forced my friends to model for. I'm still into photography and music, but adulthood means that looks a little different. Now, I snap candid photos of my friends on the weekends and use Spotify to discover new music.

But I am always looking for little ways to make these pastimes a bigger part of my life. So when I had the chance to try out the Ray-Ban Meta Wayfarer smart glasses ($299), I jumped at it. The glasses boast the ability to capture photos and videos, but they also have open-ear speakers and a microphone so you can listen to music, take a voice or video call, and even ask Meta's AI questions. And the kicker? You can't even tell they're "smart." They just look like fan-favorite Ray-Bans.

Ray-Ban Meta Wayfarer smart glasses

From

$299

$299 at Ray-Ban

I'd actually heard of the glasses from a friend who owns them; she loves using them on ski trips and at music festivals to capture video and photos. As a San Francisco resident who works in tech, she's also been impressed by their AI capabilities. She showed me how you can ask Meta any question — like, "What's the weather like today?" — and immediately hear a response. You can even have them identify what you're seeing through the glasses in real time.

Although I, too, live in SF, I am most definitely not a tech person. I prefer to stick to what I know, rarely use tech personal assistants, and can't tell you what the future of AI looks like. But still, there was something about these glasses that spoke to my more creative leanings. So I spent a day walking around my city, Ray-Ban Meta glasses on, ready to capture anything.

Ahead, I break down everything to know about the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses' capabilities, how to use them, and whether they're worth the splurge. Keep reading for my full review.

As I've alluded to before, I'm not the most tech-savvy individual. But I found the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses very intuitive and easy to use. You simply download the Meta View app, and then pair the glasses to your phone's Bluetooth.

When you're wearing the glasses and they're turned on, you're ready to take photos, videos, stream what you're seeing live, take calls, ask Meta AI questions, and more. The glasses themselves feature a button to capture photos and videos, as well as a touchpad to control volume levels. You can also control all the capabilities by using voice commands. The glasses' case acts as a charging station.

Everything — the photos and videos you take, as well as any questions you ask Meta AI — downloads to the Meta View app, creating a seamless experience.

If you're like me, then you've experienced many moments in life when you wish you could snap a photo from your very own eyes. Whether a fleeting cityscape or a friend's smile, there are some moments in which pulling out a camera or your phone feels like too much of a hassle. That's the defining feature, I think, of the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. When you're wearing them, literally anything and everything has the potential to be a lovely photograph or video capture.

I was also impressed by the quality of the photos. They were saturated and clear, and the app automatically adjusts for the wide-angle view that the glasses provide.

I was also really pleasantly surprised by the open-ear speakers. I'm someone who loves listening to tunes or podcasts when I'm walking around, and they allowed me to tune into whatever I was listening to, but also stay aware of what was going on around me. I often find that AirPods, for example, can make walking around the city a bit dangerous, given that you're blocking out so much noise around you. With the Ray-Ban Meta speakers, I felt as if I had a soundtrack playing alongside me as I moved through the world. (Big main character energy.)

I'll admit that I haven't fully taken advantage of the AI features yet, but I will say that there's something more natural about talking out loud with the glasses on than pulling out my phone and chatting to Siri. The new capabilities allow you to ask Meta AI to identify the type of flower you're looking at, for example, or tell you about the nutritional facts of a veggie you just picked up from the farmer's market.

And lastly: these are Ray-Bans, after all, so they're stylish. They certainly don't look like a piece of tech, which is a huge plus for me. Although it's not uncommon to see driverless cars and big virtual reality headsets around San Francisco, these are super subtle. Even better, Meta just announced a wider range of frame and lens options, so you can really tailor the look to fit your style. (I personally love the fashionable Skyler frames, which are available for preorder.)

I tried out the Wayfarer style with dark lenses, which meant that they're really only usable outside. If you're looking to capture content inside, or want to wear them all the time for their open-ear audio or AI capabilities, then I would opt for the transition or clear lenses.

Given that plain-old designer sunglasses can cost upwards of $300, I'd definitely say that what you're getting with these glasses is worth it — think of them as headphones, a camera, a smart assistant, and shades all in one. Particularly if you're a fan of Ray-Bans, then there's no reason not to opt for all of these cool features.

What's more, even non-techy folks will love these. They've easily become part of my daily life; they're really just there to help enhance your life, whether by capturing what's around you easier or providing AI answers to your questions.

The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are available directly from Meta and Ray-Ban, and at retailers like Amazon and Target.

★★★★

Lena Felton is the senior director of features and special content at POPSUGAR, where she oversees feature stories, special projects, and our identity content. Previously, she was an editor at The Washington Post, where she led a team covering issues of gender and identity.