iDevice review
Ray-Ban Meta Gen 3 review: great glasses, and a camera people won't see coming
Easy photos and good open-ear sound, with a recording light that's too easy to miss.
Thumbs up
- Hands-free 12MP photos and 3K video
- Good open-ear sound
- Three frames, prescriptions from -12.00 to +6.00
- Up to 9 hours, plus 50 more in the case
Thumbs down
- Calls didn't get the boost the mics promise
- Recording light is easy to miss in sun
- No cover to block the camera
- AI answers are sometimes flat wrong
Your kid blows out the candles and you don't reach for anything. You just say the word and the glasses take the photo, while you keep watching the moment instead of a screen. The 12MP camera and 3K video are good enough that you'll want to send the shots, not just keep them.
That's also the problem. These look like ordinary Ray-Bans, and that's why people don't realize there's a camera. A small light flashes when you record, but in bright sun it's easy to miss. You know you're filming. The people around you may have no idea.
Wearing them
You get three frames, the Wayfarer, the Aviator and the Zena cat-eye, and they feel easy and natural on your face. They take prescriptions from -12.00 to +6.00, so most people can wear them as their everyday glasses. The Aviator only goes from -6.00 to +4.00, so check your frame before you check out.
The arms are chunkier than regular glasses, and at 51.5 grams (1.8 oz) for the standard size some faces will feel them by the end of a long day.
Camera and sound
The camera is still the strongest part of these glasses, and it's the same 12MP sensor and 3K video as Gen 2. The upgrade is elsewhere: a six-mic array and an action button you can set up however you like.
Music sounds good through the open-ear speakers, with enough depth to enjoy a podcast or a playlist on a walk, and you can still hear the world around you. Calls work fine for normal conversations. The extra mics don't make them sound much better, though. In loud places the other person still hears plenty of what you hear.
Asking Meta AI
You can ask about whatever you're looking at, or have it read a sign in another language. Most of the time it's helpful. Once in a while it gets something flat wrong, and asking again a different way doesn't always fix it. Treat it like a quick helper, not a source you'd bet on.
There's no screen. Answers come through your ears, and you frame every shot without a viewfinder. You'll need an iPhone or Android phone and the Meta AI app.
Battery
Meta rates them at up to 9 hours, an hour more than Gen 2, and the case holds about 50 hours more. On a typical day of photos, questions and a few calls, that gets you to dinner. Play music nonstop and you're looking at about six hours. A heavy day can drain them in five. They're IPX4, so sweat and rain won't hurt them.