Meta launches cheaper smart glasses without Ray-Ban

Meta is launching its first smart glasses without the Ray-Ban brand, starting at $299, as it pushes to reach a broader audience with a lower price point and expanded prescription support [1]. The new Meta Glasses, unveiled in three styles and seven colors, are about $80 cheaper than the starting price for the Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 [1]. Meta’s vice president of wearables, Alex Himel, said the company needed a pair of glasses at a lower price point and that EssilorLuxottica’s other brands were not well-known enough to be an obvious fit [1]. EssilorLuxottica, the Franco-Italian eyewear conglomerate formed in 2018 from the merger of Essilor and Luxottica, owns Ray-Ban, Oakley, and other major brands, and generated €28.491 billion in revenue in 2025 [5]. The company’s name is stamped inside the temple of the new frames, and it assisted with design and manufacturing [1]. The internal specifications match the recently released Ray-Ban Meta Optics Styles, with slightly longer battery life [1]. The glasses support prescriptions spanning -12 to +2.25, adjustable nose pads with three positions, and bendable temple tips for a better fit [1]. The camera module, which appears smaller than on earlier models, was first introduced in March on the prescription-optimized Optics Styles [1]. Meta’s smart glasses line began with the Ray-Ban Stories and evolved into the second-generation Ray-Ban Meta, announced in September 2023, which upgraded the camera to 12 MP, added a five-microphone array, and integrated Meta AI [2]. Unlike some wearable computers, these glasses do not include a head-up display or augmented reality head-mounted display [2][3]. Meta has also developed smart glasses under the Oakley brand, known as Oakley Meta, which include a camera, open-ear speakers, and Meta AI [6]. Himel acknowledged growing misuse of the devices. “We know that there’s tampering today, and there are a handful of ways that people are doing it,” he said, adding that Meta plans to release privacy updates soon [1]. He noted that if people are not comfortable with the glasses, the business would not survive [1]. The Ray-Ban Meta glasses have faced criticism over the small size of the recording indicator light and broader mistrust of Facebook’s privacy controls [2]. The new glasses will launch with Muse Spark, the first model from Meta’s Superintelligence Labs, and Meta AI will support 14 additional languages, including Arabic, Japanese, and Mandarin [1]. Himel said Meta is engaging with regulators to pursue consistent policies across states and countries [1].