The world wasn’t ready for smart glasses in 2014, or, at least, it wasn’t prepared for Google Glass. The dorky-looking piece of eyewear was so unattractive, so creepy to anyone who cared about privacy, and so utterly baffling to everyday consumers that no one was surprised to see it blink out of existence within a year. But the world is certainly ready for them now.
In 2023, Meta launched the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, officially bringing the wearable back from the dead. Within its first year, it had sold more than a million units. Late last year, the company unveiled a second-generation pair of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which promised longer battery life, sharper video capture and a lighter design.
And they’re only getting more popular. Together, Meta and eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica sold more than 7 million smart glasses in 2025 alone, transforming the once-maligned category into Meta’s bestselling product.
I’ve been using the original Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses since they launched in 2023, so I was eager to see how they’ve improved. After spending weeks wearing the second-generation model, using them for everything from taking calls and listening to podcasts to capturing videos and testing Meta AI, has Meta made the ultimate pair of smart glasses?
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