If privacy concerns – or the threat of being labelled a pervert every time you put on your specs – has put you off investing in a pair of smart glasses, Meta has something you might finally be interested in. The firm has just announced its first pair that don’t have any on-board cameras, solely using audio cues to supply its smarts.
Launching this month alongside updated versions of Meta’s regular Ray Ban and Meta Glasses, the Ray Ban Meta Audio AI Glasses debut two new styles: Clubmaster and Burbank. The former adds a little extra bling to the nose bridge, while the latter isn’t that far removed from the iconic Wayfarer look.
With no cameras in the frame, the Ray Ban Meta Audio AI Glasses are significantly lighter than the Ray Ban Meta Glasses at just 43g. They felt a lot like my regular spectacles during a short demo, putting no noticeable extra weight on my ears or nose. They’ll also last longer per charge, managing up to 12 hours of Meta AI voice assistance and music streaming from a connected smartphone.
Prices are set to start from £319 / €349 (US pricing wasn’t available at the time of writing). Devices should be available to buy right now, directly from Meta.
The Ray Ban Meta Gen 3, meanwhile, are an evolution of the previous model. Launching in Wayfair, Zena and Aviator styles (each in a handful of colour options) you can expect slightly slimmer styling, the return of an assignable action button and up to nine hours of typical use.
They’ll still take photos, record short videos and live stream through the on-board camera, only now dynamic photos and landscape shots are also an option. Video clips use the multiple built-in mics to record Dolby Atmos positional audio. All three will only work when the privacy LED – which the firm says has been tweaked on the software side to make it virtually tamper-proof – is shining.
Meta says it will also offer a hearing enhancement function, amplifying speech to help those with mild to moderate hearing loss without having to invest in a set of hearing aids – though the feature will carry an additional cost.
The new generation Ray Ban Meta glasses will go on sale imminently, with prices starting from £409 / €449.
Meta also has a handful of new Meta Glasses styles for 2026 and beyond. Capri and Nova are in-house efforts, while a tie-in with K-pop girl group Blackpink sees bespoke styling and a ‘blind box’ charging case charm based on the performers’ pets. There will be twelve in the set, with two being a lot rarer than the rest. The Kylie Jenner collection has also been expanded.
They’re each set to retail from £229/€259.
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