Those who have been taking an interest in Smart wearables could not have failed to notice the name Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses. So what are they, and what is the hype about them sweeping the blindness community?
Ray-Ban glasses come in a variety of lenses and colours. But the one thing they all have in common is their stylish branding. Meta, famous for Facebook and WhatsApp, have teamed up with Ray-Ban to produce Smart Glasses that don’t only look the part, but sound it as well. Yes, you read correctly, Meta Ray-Bans come with an array of microphones and stereo speakers built right into the frames of the glasses. Using the Meta View app, you can pair your glasses with your phone that then allows you to take photos, record video, listen to music, ask questions courtesy of Meta AI, make and receive calls, and basically have a voice assistant at your disposal similar to the likes of Siri, Alexa and Google.
Battery life is purported to be around four hours, but it largely depends what you are using the glasses for. The case comes with a USB C and pairing button so you can pop the specs in their case and charge them several times over.
These glasses are hugely popular in the USA, Canada and Australia, and already have the AI features that are luring so many blind and visually impaired people to the party here in the UK. But there is a caveat: Meta is only starting to roll out the AI ‘Look and Tell’ features of the glasses in the UK and Ireland. This has led to confusion and rumour because some people are now enjoying these features while others aren’t receiving the update. So what has led to this confusion and rumour? Basically, customers who have purchased the Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses have discovered that if they download a Virtual Private Network (VPN) app to their phone, choose the USA or Canada as the country they live in, then set up the glasses, they can receive the Meta AI ‘Look and Tell’ features. Using a VPN is not illegal, many people do it so they can listen to radio stations from around the world that are officially blocked in some countries. So once you choose a VPN from the thousands there are in the App Store or Play Store, you can then install the Meta View app with your VPN turned on as if you were in the USA or Canada. If you turn off the VPN once the glasses have been set up in the Meta View app, you should be able to continue to fool Meta AI into believing you live overseas and take full advantage of the ‘Look and Tell’ feature. This gives you the ability to ask Meta questions such as: ‘Summarise this menu,’ or ‘What do you see in front of you?’ Without the ‘Look and Tell’ features being available, Meta AI is only a voice assistant, and it is this feature that is being slowly rolled out by Meta in the UK.
But there is more. Users of the fantastic Be My Eyes app on their Smart device will be pleased to learn that the Be My Eyes team has also partnered with Meta to bring the volunteer service of Be My Eyes to the Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses. This means that customers should now be able to call a Be My Eyes volunteer hands-free from their Meta glasses. But like the Meta AI feature, the Be My Eyes partnership is being slowly rolled out in the UK. Again, confusion and rumour reigns because some can receive the Be My Eyes feature on their Ray-Bans in a similar way to the ‘Look and Tell’ Meta AI feature while others can’t.
When questioned about this from a variety of sources, Meta has issued the following statement which I think is important to include for the sake of clarity:
Meta AI on Ray-Ban Meta Glasses
Last month, (October 2024,) we began rolling out Meta AI in the UK - this is something we’re doing gradually to make sure that the experience is a stable and positive one. For Ray-Ban Meta glasses users, this meant that people in the UK are able to engage with Meta AI using just their voice but no camera and visual input just yet. We expect the update to be available to all users by the end of November.
This means people can ask questions like, ‘Hey Meta - What are some good gift ideas for my kids - ages six and eight? They’re into arts and crafts,’ or ‘Hey Meta, what’s the best patisserie in Paris?’ However, features that use visual input such as ‘Hey Meta, what’s the story behind this landmark?’ or ‘Hey Meta, look and tell me what kind of tree this is’ are not available in the UK yet.
We’re rolling out features as they become available and will let you know when we have more to share regarding ‘Look and Tell’ features. We’re excited to bring these features to more countries soon, but we don’t have anything further to share at this time.
Be My Eyes
At this year’s Meta Connect, Meta announced a partnership to bring Be My Eyes technology to the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses for users in the UK. This feature will be gradually rolling out to users in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, and Australia this week, (English language support only.)
Whilst the feature is already available for some users, we are rolling out gradually, which is a common practice, to ensure stability and a positive user experience. New and existing users will be prompted to update the Meta View App as soon as Be My Eyes is available to them. We expect that it will be available to 100% of users by the end of this week, (22nd November 2024.)
Be My Eyes on Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses does not require Meta AI, instead you can use a voice command such as ‘Hey Meta, Be My Eyes’ to initiate the Call a Volunteer feature with Be My Eyes. Thanks to the glasses and POV video calling, the volunteer can easily see your point of view and tell you about your surroundings or give you some real-time, hands-free assistance with everyday tasks, like adjusting the thermostat or sorting and reading mail.
The feature is accessible in the Meta View app under Settings > Accessibility > Be My Eyes.
Meta concludes: ‘This integration brings a new level of convenience and independence for users in their everyday activities, aligning with our commitment to creating accessible, innovative technology for all.’
So how do you download the Meta View app and pair your shiny new Ray-Ban Smart Glasses with your phone? Follow these steps while keeping your fingers crossed that you will be the beneficiary of the added Meta AI functionality and Be My Eyes feature as part of the roll out in due course.
- Go to your App or Play Store and download Meta View. This is free and accessible with both VoiceOver and TalkBack.
- You will be asked to create an account in the Meta View app.
- Now follow the instructions provided in the Meta View app to pair the glasses with your phone.
- Once you have done this, you should be able to customise your glasses. You can add your phone’s contacts so you are able to call them through your glasses. You can also use WhatsApp to send and receive messages, take pictures, and record videos. You can even add Apple Music, Spotify, or Amazon Music a streaming services to use on the glasses.
- You can also choose a voice and language in the Meta View app, and adjust the speed of the voice if needed. Once done, you can then begin to ask Meta questions. The response you receive will depend on whether these promised new AI features have reached the Meta View app, or whether you have decided to download and use a VPN. If you have opted for this latter route, be mindful that the Meta View app and Ray-Ban Smart Glasses will update from time-to-time, so you could lose the aspect of the ‘Look and Tell’ feature unless you reset the app and glasses again with the VPN turned on. Remember, you need to pretend to be in the USA or Canada for the additional ‘Look and Tell’ feature to work at the moment so you will have to be vigilant about updates to the software and hardware to enjoy consistency.
As for Be My Eyes, if you want to check that the service has appeared on your Ray-Ban Smart Glasses, do the following:
- Open the Meta View app.
- Choose the Settings tab.
- Locate Accessibility.
- Be My Eyes should be there for you to connect with. If Accessibility is not in your Settings tab on the Meta View app, then it has not reached you as an update. This is why the whole roll out programme with Meta feels disjointed and rather ambiguous. It is further complicated by those who are using a VPN to set up and install the Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses.
Finally, remember that the audio of VoiceOver or TalkBack can be heard through your Meta Ray-Bans once you have paired the Meta View app with your phone. This means, for example, that you can use GPS apps such as Google Maps or Voice Vista for navigation purposes while wearing the glasses. This added functionality allows your glasses to act like bone conduction headphones where you can walk about outside without compromising your spatial awareness.
Conclusion And Pricing
In conclusion, the best way of checking whether Meta AI and the Be My Eyes volunteer service have reached your Meta View app is to check that both the app and glasses are up-to-date.
Smart glasses are revolutionising the way we can do things hands-free, but I believe the Smart wearables market is still in its infancy, there is clearly so much technology out there to look forward to using. We just have to be patient!
Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses can be bought from Vision Express, Argos, Currys PC World and John Lewis among other places. They start from £299.99 and go up to almost £400, depending on the style of frames and lenses you opt for. You can also request your local Optician to insert prescription lenses for you, but this has to be validated by an Ophthalmic professional.
For further information about Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses, visit
For information about Be My Eyes, visit