We’re just a couple weeks out from Meta Connect where we’ll likely see the company’s first Ray-Ban smart glasses with a display, but a rival has beaten them to the punch with a pair of specs that look to go toe-to-toe with what Meta’s offering.
That’s because we just had the international launch event for the Rokid Glasses, which are up now on Kickstarter if you want to bag a pair with a limited-time discount (ranging from 20 to 15% depending on which early bird deal you can snag).
At a glance they share a lot of similarities with Meta’s existing smart specs – we’re talking a 12MP camera, open ear speakers, and a Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 chipset. You’ll also get an onboard AI assistant which is “ChatGPT 5 empowered” if you have an internet connection.
These Rokid glasses take things up a notch however as they also boast a pair of Micro LED waveguide displays that serve as a heads-up-display for directions, real-time translation, and as a prompter.
Another feature teased by promotional images is the glasses can – just like Meta’s smart specs – identify things you can see when requested, but with the display they’ll also highlight what they’ve identified. This would be very handy for making sure there’s no confusion between what you wanted to know more about and what the glasses are informing you on.
These screens look to appear conveniently in your vision – but a little out of the way to not be too distracting – though they’re not full-color. You can only seen green text and shapes.
Regardless it certainly seems like Rokid’s specs could be a real winner if they can live up to the hype. Especially because – even before any early-bird discounts – they’re set to cost $599 (around £355 / AU$920).
That’s considerably less than the $800 (£590 / AU$1,230) Meta’s specs are rumored to cost.
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I wouldn’t count Meta out yet, however, as in the smart glasses race they have a proven track record with some very stylish (yet functional) specs with both its Ray-Ban and more recently its Oakley collaborations.
What’s more, rumors suggest Meta’s glasses will boast a full-color display – though it’ll only be visible to a single eye. This would, however, make it a more versatile screen.
As for the price difference, when you factor in that Meta’s specs always come with a charging case (so presumably its new model would too) then it’s only set to be about $100 pricier, as Rokid’s glasses with a charging case will set you back $698 (around £395 / AU$1,075).
It’s also likely Meta’s specs will actually arrive sooner – as Connect is in September and the tech typically launches within a month after. The Rokid Glasses aren’t being shipped from Kickstarter until November.
While this launch doesn’t expose a clear winner or loser between Rokid and Meta, it does highlight that the smart glasses game isn’t set to be a one horse race – certainly not to the degree that VR has felt the past few years.
We’ll have to wait and see what Meta debut at Meta Connect, and as always we’ll have to test both glasses out before issuing our final verdict – but Rokid’s specs look impressive, and if it can stick the landing Meta (and anyone looking to buy a pair of smart specs) will want to pay attention.