Meta’s Oakley smart glasses look like a better choice than Ray-Bans for your first pair. Here’s why.
Meta is outdoing itself with these new smart glasses.

Along with dominating the VR headset market with the Quest, Meta also has the top spot for smart glasses.
Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses continue to be a big seller for the company, with more than two million pairs sold since their launch in 2023. On Friday, Meta announced it's releasing another set of glasses under a different brand.
The Oakley Meta glasses are the new smart glasses that the company plans on releasing this summer. Based on the HSTN style of Oakley glasses, the Oakley Meta version will have a few upgrades over the Meta Ray-Bans.
What's new with the Oakley Meta smart glasses?
To start, the Oakley Meta smart glasses will have improved battery life over the Meta Ray-Bans. The Oakley has eight hours of battery life with normal use and up to 19 hours of standby time, about double that of the latest generation of Ray-Bans. The newer smart glasses also have fast charging, can go up to 50% in just 20 minutes, and come with a charging case that provides 48 hours of charging.
The Oakleys record video in 3k quality, which is a significant improvement over the Ray-Bans' 1440 x 1920 video quality. Photo quality is still the same at 12MP.
Another improvement with the Oakley Meta smart glasses is the use of Prizm and Prizm Polarized lenses for impact and UV protection.
Aside from these differences in tech and, of course, the style, the Oakley Meta smart glasses have the same functionality as the Ray-Bans. There's a capture button on the frames for photos and video. When recording, the camera lens will blink, letting others know they're being recorded. Speakers are built into the frame to listen to songs from Spotify or Apple Music.
Sign up to receive The Snapshot, a free special dispatch from Laptop Mag, in your inbox.
The Oakleys also have Meta AI built in. Wearers can ask the AI questions, and in its press materials, Meta focused on how the assistant can provide details related to various physical activities, such as weather conditions for a game of golf or checking out surf conditions.
The Limited-Edition Oakley Meta HSTN glasses will be available for preorder on July 11 and priced at $499. Meta plans to release the rest of the Oakley line later in the summer for $399 for the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Australia, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark. Other countries will get access to the Oakley Meta smart glasses later this year.

A veteran journalist and award-winning podcaster who specializes in reporting on conspiracy theories, misinformation, business, economics, video games, and tech.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.