I wear my Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses every day — and now you can get them for $60 off in this Black Friday deal

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses with Tom's Guide Black Friday badge — (Image credit: Future)

I’ve worn glasses all my life. There are pictures of me as a nerdy-looking two-year-old with them strapped to my head. I have a very high prescription and an aversion to things poking me in the eyeball, so I've never got on well with contact lenses. My face looks weird without glasses.

I’ve had everything from thin-framed round glasses that made me look like Harry Potter to thick spectacles that gave Austin Power vibes. My latest facial fashion foray comes in the form of a pair of Ray-Bans — with an AI brain.

Meta has been dabbling in the wearable waters since 2021 but things started to become interesting last year when generative AI was added to the now iconic Ray-Ban frames.

Lots of companies have attempted to create an AI device, including the Rabbit r1 and Humane’s easily forgotten Pin. However, thanks to a pair of cameras, microphones, speakers in the arm and Meta’s Llama AI model — the Ray-Bans are the only ‘AI device’ that makes real-world sense.

I got my first pair about six weeks ago and finally got prescription lenses for them a month ago. Since then they’ve been my constant companion.

I’ve asked Meta AI to make phone calls through my phone, check ingredients for potential allergens and identify a spider species. I've used the camera to film fireworks and photograph my food. The camera needs some work, but for convenience alone, it is worth the money.

Ryan Morrison wearing Meta Ray-Bans — I try to avoid photographing myself, but here is a random selfie of me in the Meta Ray-Bans walking home after shopping (Image credit: Future)

The battery lasts all day if you’re careful and don’t overdo it, but if it dies and you have a second pair of spectacles, you can't just put it in the charging case.

However, the smart glasses are also Ray-Bans. This means they also work fine without the AI or smart features. This is what sets them apart from other AI wearables.

The focus was as much on creating something stylish as it was on making a device. It is very “Apple” in that regard. In fact, these are the type of smart glasses I'd have expected to come from Apple rather than Meta.

Meta appears to have cracked the AI wearable space. There are still things it needs to improve such as linking to more services including podcasting, radio and non-Meta messaging apps — but as a phone companion, it is worth every cent. With $50 off, those cents go a lot further.

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Ryan Morrison, a stalwart in the realm of tech journalism, possesses a sterling track record that spans over two decades, though he'd much rather let his insightful articles on AI and technology speak for him than engage in this self-aggrandising exercise. As the former AI Editor for Tom's Guide, Ryan wields his vast industry experience with a mix of scepticism and enthusiasm, unpacking the complexities of AI in a way that could almost make you forget about the impending robot takeover.
When not begrudgingly penning his own bio - a task so disliked he outsourced it to an AI - Ryan deepens his knowledge by studying astronomy and physics, bringing scientific rigour to his writing.