Meta has introduced a new line of AI smart glasses, dubbed Meta Glasses, starting at a price of $299. These glasses are designed in-house in collaboration with EssilorLuxottica, but notably lack the Ray-Ban or Oakley branding seen on previous models. This price point makes them approximately $80 cheaper than the latest Ray-Ban models, which start at $379, a strategic move to make the technology more accessible and expand Meta's market penetration.
The Meta Glasses do not feature a screen but include a camera and personal speakers. They come with a dedicated button that can activate the Meta AI assistant by default, or be customized for other features. Key capabilities include answering questions about various topics, understanding visual input, and aiding in daily life management. Meta claims these new glasses offer over eight hours of battery life, with an additional 40 hours provided by the on-the-go charging case.
Upcoming features for the display-less glasses include "Pedestrian navigation" for turn-by-turn walking directions and support for 14 new languages in its live translation feature, such as Japanese, Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, and Korean. The glasses will launch with Muse Spark, Meta's new AI model, which will also be available on older Ray-Ban and Oakley models via software updates in the US and Canada. This initiative underscores Meta's deepening commitment to wearable technology and its efforts to prove the value of its substantial AI investments amidst a competitive landscape where Meta and EssilorLuxottica currently hold over 80% market share.
The strategic decision to remove the Ray-Ban branding, despite continued partnership with EssilorLuxottica, is primarily driven by the desire to offer a lower price point. Andrew Bosworth, Meta’s chief technology officer, emphasized the importance of reaching a broad market segment through varied price points and designs. This launch comes shortly after Snap unveiled its Specs smart glasses at a significantly higher price of $2,195, highlighting the diverse approaches to the evolving smart glasses market.
While the camera on the new Meta Glasses appears smaller, a change introduced with prescription-optimized Optics Styles, privacy concerns remain a significant challenge for Meta. The company aims for a uniform approach to handling these issues, acknowledging the risk of products being banned in certain public spaces. Alongside AI regulation, privacy is a critical consideration as Meta focuses on AI as a core use case for its new glasses.
