Meta·smart glasses
Ray-Ban Meta
Based on 28 credible posts from Hacker News & Bluesky. 33 filtered out as bot-like or off-topic.
Medium confidenceA solid sample; expect small shifts as more owners post. How we score
Scored September 27, 2026
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Owner reviews
Overall owner mood
Most owners are happy with it: 71% of 28 reviews are positive and 0% negative. Praise centers on sound and camera. Owners with 6+ months of use are less positive (33%), which suggests it wears on people over time.
What owners like
Sound praised by 3 owners
“It's not visual information seen yet (what both Meta and Apple are working towards) just audio at the moment yet useful, fun and handy.”
Camera praised by 2 owners
“Hands-free photos & videos, calls, music, and Meta AI, all while looking like a regular pair of cute Ray-Bans.”
Display praised by 2 owners
“I've been using the the product glasses for a while now, and the main reason I like them is because they do not have a display ( Another screen to glare at is the last thing I need, but I can imagine there are people who want one of this.”
What owners complain about
Nothing two or more owners agree on yet.
What owners talk about
- Camera2 praise · 1 complain
- Display2 praise · 1 complain
- Sound3 praise · 0 complain
- Customer support1 praise · 1 complain
- Software & AI1 praise · 1 complain
Built from the reviews themselves — every quote links to the owner who wrote it.
Full text of every credible post we scored. Bot-like and off-topic comments are hidden.
Disagree with you there having used Rayban Metas for about six months. [...] It certainly isn't a replacement for a more robust interface, but it is a very nice way of using a computer while I'm out and about and don't want to pull out my phone.
Used my Ray Ban (Metas) since last October almost daily. Im just using it to capture my life when needed without the need to have my phone. [...] Half of those I talk to when wearing them have an issue with glasses with camera and the other half don't care with some being interested in getting their own.
[...] I also (i know it's not a popular thing) have enjoyed wearing my Meta Ray Ban's since 2023 even if they break as MANY months later they come back to life. [...]
[...] The goal was to make a client for the RayBan meta gen 1 glasses, which can record good video, that proved impossible so I moved to the earlier gen from 2021 which I still had stashed around. [...]
[...] I wear my Ray Ban Metas a lot (bought in 2023) and love them but i can't take selfies with them. I have to pull out my phone. They are complimentary to phone tho i do enjoy not having my phone on me to take pics, vids and ask it for the time now (add 5G to it and it will do more like stream music). [...] where almost everything is done from the lock screen and it takes the best selfies of you (gets you to the best lighting) and everything under the sun.
I do not like to take pictures with my camera for exactly this reason. [...] I'm also opposed to nearly everything that FB does, but I purchased the Ray-Ban Meta sunglasses a year ago anyway. [...] I also prefer candid images where people aren't posing for the camera but are acting naturally. The great thing about having a camera on your eyeglasses is that you can still be in the moment; mostly. I do hold more still when I take a picture or shoot a video. I make people in my party aware that I'm wearing them and that I'll be taking pictures. [...] That's usually a case where people with me also have their phones out snapping pictures though, so it's pretty obvious that camera's are going. [...]
I worked on some next next gen AR glasses, I saw and used both orion and the prototype version of the rayban meta display glasses Orion suffered from the problem that plagued it throughout its production: shifting goals and poor product management. The display team promised and then didn't deliver, twice. One of my friends showed me a demo in meta display glasses (the production one) that allowed you to take a youtube recipe video, feed it into the dipshit machine and it'd spit out a step by step guide for you to follow. [...] The demo I worked on was taking some research glasses and attaching SLAM, always on audio and basic VLM descriptions of what you are looking at and dumping it into a database. [...] I put in face and screen blurring, but thats not really enough. [...]
[...] That nostalgia signals there's a market for alternatives, which we've seen some companies serve, and expect others to enter. [...] Ray Ban Metas are also a new category (consider an emerging AR application — or more of a glorified camera device, for now). A first person point of view for videos is very different than what's captured by a smartphone; I feel like I'm "there" when I watch travel videos I've taken with them, much more than when I watch what's taken with my phone. [...]
[...] Technology does change the world eventually, but the latest pair of smart goggles or a slightly better camera on your personal surveillance device does not. [...] Shared with my family many travel videos from my Rayban Metas. [...] My other cameras are not recent (Canon 6D - 12 years old, iPhone 12 - 5 years old).
I might have said the same, but ever since a guy showed me a first-person go-karting video he took on his Ray-Ban Metas, I've been hooked on the idea of being able to record experiences like that... so stupid but so cool.
[...] The below purchases are all durable things that should last at least 5 years. [...] The Oura replaces itself, with a heavily diminished battery. [...] The Android is to create a minimal distraction device with only select apps, while slowly weening myself out of the Apple ecosystem stranglehold. The TRMNL is a side-project, to build some custom code for. [...] The Ray Ban Metas only really make an appearance when I travel, but when I do, I'm very glad to have them. Provides a very different perspective than a handheld camera or smartphone, especially in dense areas (walking through crowded outdoor markets, etc)
[...] It's true that the Ray-Ban Meta Display can be controlled with hand gestures but doing so is apparently optional. [...] My X-ray shows I have bone spurs on the vertebrae of my neck because I look down at screens too much (according to my chiropractor). [...]
I've been using the RayBan Meta glasses for a while now, and the main reason I like them is because they do not have a display ( Another screen to glare at is the last thing I need, but I can imagine there are people who want one of this. I use them for taking videos when I'm out and for listening to music without putting on headphones or earphones. While it is not the best at anything, it is definitely capable of doing a lot of things well enough and that is what matters a lot of times.
I have a rayban meta and ask it various questions on STEM (ex: what is entropic gravity). [...] The glasses are a pretty capable Bluetooth headset end to end. [...] The built in AI I’ll use for things like “remember what level of the parking garage I am on” where it snaps a photo of the level number and I can ask later.
I use voice mode of ChatGPT almost exclusively using RayBan metaglasses(especially when outside / cyciling).
Ray Ban Meta is the first AR/VR product that's worth the price of admission imo. The price isn't crazy, it's a very well put together product and I actually find myself using them. [...]
[...] Under $1000 Meta Ray-ban glasses. I find using them as headphones to be a better option then transparency mode when using my phone. [...]
[...] Like Im enjoying my Ray Ban Metas since last October (use them daily). [...]
[...] Ray Ban Metas are out now. They are very handy for taking pics, videos and asking the time when my phone isnt on me. [...] It's not visual information seen yet (what both Meta and Apple are working towards) just audio at the moment yet useful, fun and handy. [...]
Eh, smartwatches are actually useful though - while I don't use them a lot for "phone replacement," I do use them for a lot of things they do really well, namely checking the time(lol), as well as health tracking. My watch constantly tracks my heart rate, any variations in it, as well as a bunch of other data, including sleep. [...] the other day it actually woke me up because my heart rate had dropped dangerously low. [...] Other than these, a lot of "doing stuff on watch" has been replaced by the RayBan Meta smartglasses for me tbf.
The Ray-Ban Metas are actually amazing, I am surprised they are not more popular! [...] No longer do I have to look at <event through my phone. [...] The audio quality is also surprisingly good - I can listen to music while still enjoying the nature around me (in a way I like more than passthrough on the AirPods.) I don't really care for the AI, but maybe one day they'll give us Llama 3 400b and it'll be good too.
I’m wearing the Rayban Meta right now and they are already mind blowing, I can already talk to that Meta AI assistant seamlessly. I bet one of the future iteration will have exactly this.
I just got the Rayban Meta glasses an hour ago, put them on, said "Hey Meta" and I was interacting with an AI with my voice, and hearing a response back. It's so unbelievable and surreal I don't understand why Siri/Google assistant are not doing this already. I really feel like I live in the future.
Okayyy, these Ray-Ban Meta Skyler glasses are giving smart + stylish. Hands-free photos & videos, calls, music, and Meta AI, all while looking like a regular pair of cute Ray-Bans. I can create content without constantly having my phone in my hand, and THAT is a game changer RayBanMeta Skyler
Honestly, I’m an avid user of Ray-Ban metas and I agree that if Zuck doesn’t want to re-hash his old original sin (distracting algorithmic feeds) into this new form factor, he would block out any feeds and notifications from the glasses when it detected someone was talking to you, which the glasses can do really well. [...]
[...] I have Rayban Metas and the hardware is great...but the software borders on being unhelpful. If they merely served a dumb camera and bluetooth headset to my phone they'd be an unbelievably good product. Meta won't do this because they want to capture everything going on, but I don't want to chat with Meta's AI, it is very bad, I want to chat with Gemini or ChatGPT and I can do so with their glasses but I must initiate that on my phone (Meta won't give you wakewords for OpenAI/Google of course). [...] There is no need for an app store or anything like that, just the thinest software layer you need to make the sunglass hardware work as a dumb bluetooth headset and remote camera for the user's phone.
I got one transition lens RayBan Meta glasses. [...] I also like it can replace ear plugs if you don't care about premium sound quality. The only downside is a tad bit too heavy...
On the flip side businesses could restrict Ray Ban Meta glasses wearers. Amusement parks have that rule that you can wear your glasses on their rides but not smart glasses that record video. I was at Cedar Point this summer with my Ray Bans on and was told to take them off or I couldnt ride.
The claims, and the evidence
What the brand claims
No published claims on file for this product yet.
What owners report
“Disagree with you there having used Rayban Metas for about six months. [...] It certainly isn't a replacement for a more robust interface, but it is a very nice way of using a computer while I'm out and about and don't want to pull out my phone.”
after 6 monthsView on Hacker News“Used my Ray Ban (Metas) since last October almost daily. Im just using it to capture my life when needed without the need to have my phone. [...] Half of those I talk to when wearing them have an issue with glasses with camera and the other half don't care with some being interested in getting their own.”
after 1 yearView on Hacker News“[...] I also (i know it's not a popular thing) have enjoyed wearing my Meta Ray Ban's since 2023 even if they break as MANY months later they come back to life. [...]”
after 2 yearsView on Hacker News“[...] The goal was to make a client for the RayBan meta gen 1 glasses, which can record good video, that proved impossible so I moved to the earlier gen from 2021 which I still had stashed around. [...]”
after 3 yearsView on Hacker News
Common Ray-Ban Meta problems
Issues at least two owners independently report.
No recurring complaint pattern found across the reviews analyzed. That's a genuinely good sign — it means owners aren't converging on the same problem.