I wore the New Ray-Ban Meta Glasses 2 for two weeks: Here is why they might finally replace your smartphone

Additionally, there is something more natural about a POV video, where the world sees things from your specific perspective, and that too in 3K. Somehow, I felt this was very different when shot on a smartphone, even if the angle is the same. Also, if you are in a gathering or meeting with someone important, this perspective adds a lot more value. And all you have to do is say, “Hey, Meta, record” or take a photograph. Even long recordings work as the glasses come with 32GB of storage. I would have loved the ability to stream directly, like in the first generation, though.

View this post on Instagram

Your AI companion

I was wearing the Meta Glasses 2 at my home in Kerala when a person walked towards me and handed over a pamphlet in Malayalam. I asked the glasses to read what was on it, and Meta identified the language and the topic in the paper, while saying that it could not translate from Malayalam at the moment. 

It can even read out articles from the newspaper, though with a bit of nudging. For people with disabilities, these glasses can be a great aid.(Image: The Indian Express/ Nandagopal Rajan)

But it will not struggle with larger languages, provided you have downloaded it and enabled live languages on the Meta AI app. So if you are travelling in a land where you cannot understand the signs and make proper conversation in real-time. This is an ideal accessory for travellers, given that the glasses also turn into shades in the sunlight. 

The ability to decipher what the glasses see is a great power to have. And this works to identify everything from landmarks to products and even familiar faces like Narendra Modi and Mamata Bannerjee. It can even read out articles from the newspaper, though with a bit of nudging. For people with disabilities, these glasses can be a great aid.

And being an AI companion connected to the Internet via the smartphone, it has answers for anything that could be bugging you, from what the plant you just saw in the park to a more academic need to understand the marginal propensity to consume. 

Meta AI is good with a lot of things, but not with real-time news. A query for the latest news from The Indian Express gave me some really old headlines.

This is an ideal accessory for travellers, given that the glasses also turn into shades in the sunlight. (Image: The Indian Express/ Nandagopal Rajan)

A safe way to consume music

One aspect that really impressed me was the audio quality of the Meta Glasses 2. This wasn’t even a feature I was expecting to be good. But the glasses offer a well-rounded audio experience, even though you have nothing inside your ears. Even in noisy surroundings, the music or the podcast reaches your ears without obstruction, which I have struggled with using open-ear and bone-conducting earphones. Plus, no one around you can hear what you are listening to.

Connectivity without picking up the phone

Like using AirPods, you can take and make calls easily using the Meta Glasses 2 too. I could call my dad with just a voice command and got good call quality all along, thanks to the five built-in microphones. And as you go about your day, the glasses keep alerting you about messages coming in via WhatsApp. This can be quite irritating, given how many messages I get in a minute. Still, this is an easy way to stay connected for those who cannot afford to miss anything.

With features like these coming to your glasses, there will soon be very little need to peer into a smartphone, other than to consume content like video and play games. It might be a good thing that gradually reduces our screen time and keeps us focused on what we are doing. Over the years, the smartphone has evolved from being a communication device to a consumption device that keeps us distracted all the time. Smartglasses could be a way to regain our attention from the smartscreen.