Browsing: Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality

Norway has become the first country to propose a temporary ban on camera-enabled and AI-powered smart glasses in public spaces, amid growing concerns around privacy.

Since theOculus Quest 2, the VR industry has been chasing a high point that seems impossible to re-summit — let alone surpass. I mean, how can you compete with popularity propelled by global pandemic-caused lockdowns and ultra-low costs when people are no longer trapped in their homes and facing down RAM-crisis-fuelled tech price hikes?

Meta Connect just ended, and the biggest announcement of the night for me was easily the debut of Meta’s VR Glasses — even if they were leaked ahead of schedule by Meta’s own prescription tutorial.

All eyes were on Meta Connect 2026. The annual hardware showcase is where the company debuts its latest wearables, and this year’s event comes at a time when anti-smart glasses sentiment seems to be at an all-time high — though that didn’t stop Meta showcasing several brand new pairs of specs.

Even as public opinion turns against camera-equipped smart glasses, Meta is pushing forward with its generally well-received and quite popular Ray-Ban Meta line. Alongside the much-anticipated Meta Ray-Ban Audio glasses, which skip cameras entirely and come in two styles, Clubmaster and Burbank, there’s also the next generation of the Ray-Ban Meta glasses.

Detailed testing confirms that the Meta Glasses firmware update, designed to stop a potential privacy problem with surreptitious recording, does what it’s supposed to do — but Germany’s privacy enforcement agent says it’s not enough, because the light itself is insufficiently visible.

Local government councils and public schools across Australia are continuing moves to rapidly ban the use of smart glasses in public areas, following the federal government’s announcement that use of the devices will be prohibited in government-run workplaces, services centers, laboratories and local council buildings.

It’s almost time for Meta Connect, with the brand hosting its annual event on September 23 and 24. Here, we’re expecting to see several new devices, with a focus on smart glasses.

Meta Connect 2026 is fast approaching, and it seems a big surprise hardware announcement has just been leaked — by none other than Meta itself. It’s not much but our first official look at the so-called Project Phoenix has me very excited that we might finally get the Meta Quest Pro successor I’ve been begging…

At IFA 2026 I got to experience several pairs of smart specs including two from RayNeo: the impressive GT Max glasses which could be my new favorites, and the RayNeo iO.