Meta Unveils Ray-Ban Display: Smart Glasses with Built-in Screen and Neural Band

Meta's Ray-Ban Smart Glasses Now Have a Screen and a Magic Wristband

Finally, Meta gave its smart glasses the one thing people want the most. Meta’s Ray-Bans are back with a new generation, and this time they’re finally giving people the one thing they really wantâ€"a screen. At Meta’s annual Connect developer conference, the company officially took the wraps off its Meta Ray-Ban Display, which are, as the name suggests, its first pair of AI-infused smart glasses to come with a full-color in-lens display. The smart glasses, which still bear the same Ray-Ban branding, will cost $799 and are available for preorder today. As you might expect, they can do quite a few things that their predecessor can't, including message notifications, turn-by-turn navigation, and telling you when queries to Meta AI are processing. There are several app integrations, including WhatsApp and Instagram, allowing you to watch reels and make video calls natively in the glasses. One major upgrade on the message notifications front is that the Meta Ray-Ban Display will not be limited to only WhatsApp, meaning it will be able to show notifications on both iOS and Android devices. That’s not the only major shift in this generation. Meta says its first-ever display has a 600 x 600 resolution and 20-degree field of view. The display is monocular, which means it's only in one lensâ€"at the bottom right-ish cornerâ€"and has a refresh rate of 90Hz. Brightness goes up to 5,000 nits and as low as 30 nits, which makes them usable outdoors in full light. One of the coolest parts of the display is that Meta claims that there's less than 2% light leakage, which means that you can't see when someone has their display activated. Speaking of light leakage, all of Meta's Ray-Ban Display smart glasses will come with transition lenses. On one hand, that feels like a weird choice, but it also makes sense since this is a gadget you're going to want to use indoors as well as out, and for $800, you should be able to use them for as long as you like without having to take them off. "As long as you like," in this case, will be no more than 6 hours, according to Meta, which is a lot longer than I was expecting. That solid battery life is thanks in part to what Meta is calling "ultra-narrow steelcan batteries." I wish I knew exactly what that meant, but for now, I can only look forward to getting more of a deep dive in the future. Glasses are only half the appeal of Meta's Ray-Ban Display, though. The other half is its sEMG wristband that you use to control the UI in the glasses. The Meta Neural Band, as Meta is calling it, is arguably the most innovative part of its new Ray-Ban package, since no other product like it exists on a commercial scale. Outside of being a first, it also offers a potential solution to a problem that no other maker of smart glasses has quite solvedâ€"that problem being, how the hell do you actually use smart glasses? While most smart glasses (Meta’s first-gen Ray-Bans included) have a voice assistant for shouting commands like “take a picture†and a fairly simple touch-sensitive bar for physical inputs (i.e., pause/play), neither is ideal in every situation. The fact is, adding a screen complicates smart glassesâ€"the more you can do, the more you’ll need to convey to your glasses, and in order to do that, you need an input system as nuanced as the eyewear itself. Not only that, but if you want to use your smart glasses discreetly (or in a normal fashion at all, really), shouting into a crowded subway car is less than ideal. With the Neural Band, however, you can navigate the UI discreetly by pinching, swiping, and tapping through various menus in the smart glasses. My favorite gesture is a pinch to zoom for taking photos and videos. It's Vision Pro-esque, but all done without cameras. In case you're wondering, yes, the neural band is included in that $800 cost. I got a chance to use Meta’s Ray-Bans and its new Neural Band, and you can read my full impressions here. Like previous iterations of Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses, this year’s edition will also come equipped with cameras and speakers. Camera-wise, Meta is going with a 12-megapixel ultra-wide sensor that can also capture 1080p at 30fps in a 1,440 x 1,920 resolution. There's also a 3x digital zoom. The camera is used for the computer vision in the glasses, aka Meta AI, as well. Despite being a fan of Meta’s Ray-Bans (they’re the only device I ever want to take calls with), Meta AI has been a weak spot for me. While the voice assistant works well most of the time for basic stuff like taking pictures/videos, playing Spotify, and asking what your battery life is, the heavier AI lifting is hit-or-miss at best. Whether Meta’s new smart glasses fix that remains to be seen since I haven't had a chance to use them, but I'm hoping for an upgrade here. But even if AI is still finicky and the cameras and audio are about the same, these smart glasses still have a freaking screen. That’s a big step forward, even if functionality is limited for now. When people ask me about my first-gen Ray-Bans, the first thing they want to know is whether they have a display in them, and they’re inevitably very disappointed when I have to let them down. Now, I’ll actually have something to show them, and if Meta’s wristband works, I’ll even have something to show them that only Meta can provide.

Meta launches Ray-Ban Display glasses for $799, but you can't buy them online

Meta is launching its first smart glasses with a built-in display, with the new "Meta Ray-Ban Display" glasses launching later this month for $799. Smart glasses have been growing in functionality and popularity in recent years, especially built on the back of Meta's Ray-Ban partnership. The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses have been a smash hit, spawning a sibling earlier this year in the Oakley Meta smart glasses, and now a sequel. But, those glasses only have a camera, speaker, and a touchpad. Now, Meta is launching its first pair of glasses with a display. That's where the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses come into the picture. With a familiar, but thicker design, the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses can show an interface off to the right side of your view that lets you interact with Meta AI, see a camera viewfinder, control music, and both send and receive messages. The "hi-res" 600x600p display is full-color. You can expect 6 hours of "mixed use" battery life, and up to 30 hours with the included charging case. To control it, you'll use Meta's "Neural Band" which can recognize your hand movements - specifically the muscle signals, not just the movements themselves - to control the interface. Meta will even let you "type" with it. The Neural Band has 18 hours of battery life. Features of the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses will include: Meta explains: Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses are designed to help you look up and stay present. With a quick glance at the in-lens display, you can check messages, preview photos, see translations, get help from Meta AI, and more -- all without needing to pull out your phone. It's technology that keeps you tuned in to the world around you, not distracted from it. This breakthrough category of AI glasses comes with a full-color, high-resolution display that's there when you want it -- and gone when you don't. The display is placed off to the side, so it doesn't obstruct your view. And it isn't on all the time -- it's designed for short interactions that you're always in control of. This isn't about strapping a phone to your face. It's about helping you quickly accomplish some of your everyday tasks without breaking your flow. Meta says Ray-Ban Display glasses will go on sale starting on September 30 - less than two weeks from now. They'll cost $799 for the duo of the glasses and the Neural Band. But there's a catch. While you will be able to go buy them, you can't do so online. Meta will be selling these exclusively in-store starting in the US. You'll be able to find Ray-Ban Display at "limited" stores including Best Buy, LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut, and of course Ray-Ban stores. Select Verizon stores will also start selling the glasses "soon." Along with the ability to purchase a pair, you'll also be able to get a hands-on demo at these locations. Other countries including Canada, France, the UK, and Italy will follow in "early 2026." Meta says that this in-store restriction is to "make sure customers get the glasses and band that's perfect for them," but that buying options will expand "over time." Colors include Black and Sand with transition lenses.