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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 Display glasses include an Audio Only mode that disables the built-in screen entirely while driving, functioning like the standard Meta Ray-Ban AI glasses. Users retain hands-free calling and voice commands but lose all visual overlays, since the glasses were not built for real-time turn-by-turn navigation.
HTC has launched its Vive Eagle AI glasses globally at $499, offering a camera and audio experience similar to Meta's Ray-Ban glasses but with a key difference: a $49 magnetic Power Boost battery pack that snaps onto the frame to extend usage without removing the glasses. The built-in battery lasts four to five hours, and the add-on pack allows continuous use, unlike Meta's design, which requires placing the glasses in a case to recharge.
Meta reached an $18 billion settlement with 29 state attorneys general over claims that Instagram and Facebook design features harmed young users, agreeing to impose a two-hour daily usage cap for minors, remove certain cosmetic filters, and tighten age verification. Morgan Stanley analysts say resolving this legal overhang could pave the way for Meta to roll out a pipeline of AI products, including an upgraded MetaAI, agentic ad tools, subscription offerings, and its consumer AI agent Hatch.
Apple is preparing to release its first smart glasses as early as next year, built around Siri and Visual Intelligence rather than augmented-reality displays. The glasses will use cameras and microphones to let Siri interpret surroundings, translate text, and answer contextual questions, plus built-in speakers for audio, according to a Bloomberg report citing Mark Gurman. Apple is designing multiple frame styles in-house using acetate material, with possible future versions adding health-tracking features like heart-rate sensors.
Meta was granted a patent last week for a hardware-enforced privacy system that includes a 'mute or lock' switch capable of disabling sensors on devices like its Ray-Ban smart glasses. The filing, submitted in February, comes as the company's camera-equipped glasses have drawn widespread criticism and earned the nickname 'pervert glasses' due to misuse by harassers and voyeurs.
A free iPhone app called Zuckoff scans Bluetooth signals to alert users when Ray-Ban Meta glasses, Snap Spectacles, or similar wearable cameras are nearby, estimating their distance. It's part of a growing set of privacy tools, including Antizuck and Nearby Glasses, built in response to concerns that smart glasses can record video without visible warning.
Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses, built with EssilorLuxottica, are facing criticism after users were found photographing and filming strangers without consent, then posting the footage online. Critics have dubbed the devices 'pervert glasses' amid mounting concerns about privacy and ethical misuse.
A reviewer tested Xreal smart glasses that tether to a laptop via USB-C and project a virtual screen equivalent to a 170-inch TV directly into the wearer's field of view. Unlike Meta's Ray-Ban glasses, these devices from makers like Xreal, Viture and Rokid contain no cameras or recording features, instead mirroring displays from laptops, phones, tablets or handheld consoles for a personal, portable viewing experience.