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Meta reportedly building camera-free 'Luna' smart glasses for October launch

According to The Information, Meta is developing a new smart glasses line called Luna that omits the camera found in its current models. The glasses will reportedly come in two styles, Clubmaster and Burbank, and feature six microphones plus ear-facing speakers for interacting with Meta's AI assistant via a side button. Meta may reveal Luna at its Connect conference on September 23-24, with shipping possibly starting in October.

Allen Institute maps 3D structure of noradrenaline neurons in mouse brain's locus coeruleus

Researchers at the Allen Institute and Johns Hopkins used Dbh-Cre mice with fluorescently labeled nuclei, tissue clearing, and light-sheet microscopy to image and count noradrenaline-producing neurons in the locus coeruleus at cellular resolution. They applied a deep-learning pipeline to detect neuron centroids and registered the data to a standard brain atlas to build detailed 3D density maps of this small but influential brainstem nucleus.

Wearables and AI poised to reshape clinical trial design, researchers say

Researchers are increasingly using wearable devices—smartwatches, wristbands, patches and rings—to collect real-time physiological data such as heart rate, blood pressure and activity in clinical trials. Specialists say advances in sensor technology and AI could enable decentralized trials where participants are monitored remotely, with dosing personalized to individual data rather than fixed protocols. Current devices already track metrics via accelerometers, gyroscopes and photoplethysmography, with future versions potentially measuring biomarkers like glutamate and cortisol.

Western University researcher flags privacy risks of consumer wearables in health studies

Wuyoh Sui, a digital-health researcher at Western University in Canada, examined how smart watches and rings are increasingly used in scientific studies of exercise, sleep and chronic disease. He points out that these commercial devices rely on opaque AI algorithms whose data handling is difficult to audit, raising ethical questions for researchers who adopt them.

Apple's new Watch feature raises alarms over always-on audio recording

Apple has unveiled 'Audio Intelligence,' a feature for upcoming Apple Watches that continuously listens to and transcribes nearby conversations, then summarizes them daily. Although Apple has built in some privacy safeguards for the watch wearer, anyone speaking near a person using this feature could be recorded and transcribed without their knowledge or consent.

Refurbished vs Pre-Owned Phones: Key Differences Explained

Shoppers looking to save money on smartphones often encounter listings labeled 'pre-owned,' 'used,' or 'refurbished,' terms that sound similar but carry different meanings. A refurbished phone has typically been inspected, cleaned, tested, and repaired with replacement parts as needed, while a pre-owned phone is usually sold as-is without such processing.

Meta sued over alleged use of Instagram photos for smart glasses face recognition

A proposed class action filed by families in Illinois and California accuses Meta of harvesting biometric data from Facebook and Instagram photos to build a facial recognition system tied to its smart glasses, reportedly called 'NameTag.' The suit follows earlier reporting that Meta quietly embedded facial recognition code into the devices despite public denials that such a feature was planned. Meta has called the lawsuit meritless, saying no product has shipped and no final decision on the feature has been made.

HTC Vive Eagle smart glasses launch at $499 but underwhelm in review

HTC's Vive Eagle smart glasses, styled after Ray-Ban's Wayfarer-inspired smart eyewear, are now available in the US for $499 with a 12-megapixel camera, four-microphone array and bass-enhanced speakers. The device runs on a Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chip with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage, but its 235mAh battery only lasts 4.5 hours of music playback or three hours of calls.

Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses Spark Dating Privacy Backlash

Women interviewed by WIRED describe being secretly filmed on dates by men wearing Meta's AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses, which can capture photo and video from the wearer's point of view. One woman, Courtney McAnuff, discovered footage of her date posted to Instagram without her consent, prompting her to describe the experience as a violation. Meta sold over 7 million pairs of the glasses in 2025, and the devices have earned the nickname "creep glasses" amid growing complaints about covert filming in social settings.

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