Meta's Oakley Smart Glasses Have 3K Video—Watch Out, Ray-Ban

WIRED

5 hours ago

The new Oakley Meta glasses outshine the Ray-Ban Meta with a big jump in battery life and video quality. And there's supposedly even more to come.
When Meta launched the second generation of its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses in late 2023, few predicted the success that lay ahead for the collaboration—perhaps not even Meta itself.
But now, with more than two million sales under its belt, Meta has been looking for a way to widen its partnership with eyewear giant and Ray-Ban owner EssilorLuxottica and keep up the momentum. The answer it seems was staring them in the face: a collaboration with the company's second largest brand, Oakley.
'We launched our second generation of the Ray-Ban Meta glasses at [Meta] Connect a year and a half ago, and they've taken off faster than we expected,' Alex Himel, VP of wearables at Meta tells WIRED. 'But they were never meant to be the one and only thing we did with EssilorLuxottica.'
'We've found people leaning into different active use cases with [Ray-Ban Meta]. And so Oakley, which is a brand that has represented both performance and technical innovation, felt like the most natural next step for our collaboration.'
Oakley Meta specs have a higher resolution camera, offering 3K video, up from full HD in the Ray-Ban Metas. Photograph: Oakley
Like Ray-Ban Meta, Oakley Meta will be a full smart glasses range, with a number of styles to choose from as the line expands. However, it's the popular Oakley HSTN frames (pronounced HOW-stuhn) that are the first to get the Meta makeover, with all of the same Meta AI functionality as Ray-Ban Metas, but with improved features aimed at a performance market.
This includes a 50 percent longer battery life, with a fully charged pair of Oakley Meta HSTN lasting up to eight hours of typical use compared with four hours on the Ray-Ban Meta. The Oakley Meta's charging case also gets a boost, with up to 48 hours of charging time on the go, versus 36 hours in the Ray-Ban Meta.
That's perhaps all the more surprising when you hear that the Oakley Meta also have a higher resolution camera, allowing you to share video in 3K video, up from full HD in the Ray-Ban Metas. This is a down to a new physical battery plus software improvements, Himel says, but can Ray-Ban Meta owners expect similar improvements in the future?
Oakley Meta glasses have 50 percent more battery life, with a fully charged pair lasting up to eight hours versus four on the Ray-Ban iteration. Photograph: Oakley
'One thing that's cool about Ray-Ban Meta is that every month we've been shipping software updates that make the products better. And so owners should already be noticing that the image quality is getting better—but yes of course, we'll have hardware updates at some point for the Ray-Ban Meta, too.'
With a target market that is likely looking to throw themselves down mountains, over hills and along roads, durability has been given due consideration. The Oakley Meta HSTN use the same proprietary frame materials as the analog HSTN, including Oakley's O-Matter, which promises to be 25 percent lighter and twice as strong as traditional acetate.
Of course, there are some differences in overall weight compared with the analog versions, but it has been something that Meta says it has worked closely with Oakley to find the balance that stays true to the brand and what its users want from a pair of its glasses.
'I'm learning a lot. I have a software background, and so it's easy for me to focus on making sure this integrates well with Instagram or the image quality is really good,' says Himel. 'But then when I speak to Matteo or Rocco from EssilorLuxottica, we have to consider all these subtle dimensions that keep the glasses authentic to the brand.
'We've done a lot of research to make sure the flexible hinges fit just right, and that the extra weight is balanced out so that if you're doing something active, they stay on your face, and that they're comfortable to wear all day.'
Some of the frames also come with Oakley's PRIZM lenses, which enhance color and contrast for detail enhancement that can help all the more during active use, and there's an IPX4 waterproofing rating that matches Ray-Ban Meta, though Himel admits as this means the glasses are merely splash proof, more needs to be done for future versions.
'I surf pretty actively, and one of the top use cases I've wanted is to have a pair of glasses that I can wear surfing. IPX4 can withstand getting wet, but not getting submerged—that needs an IP67 rating. That's something we're working on for future glasses, but if you're getting splashed, if it's raining, if you're sweating—you don't need to worry about that. The Oakley Meta HSTN work great for this.'
The Oakley Meta HSTN will be available in six different finishes, but the range kicks off with a limited edition Oakley Meta, featuring gold accents and gold 24K PRIZM Polar lenses. They will cost $499 and are available for preorder from July 11, with others in the collection costing $399.
But what's next for Meta's collaboration with EssilorLuxottica—which has licenses for brands including Chanel, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana—considering the latter announced it would be ramping up production of Meta glasses to 10 million a year by 2026?
'We're continuing to work closely together,' says Himel. "Glasses are a very personal choice. Different people pick different things, different brands, to represent who they are. So we will continue to launch more brands and more styles.
'We have already learned how to scale much more quickly, but there are still a good set of technical and operational problems to solve before we get there. But that's something we're excited to do, and so this is definitely a step in that direction.'