Meta Connect 2026: Ray-Ban Meta Audio $349, VR Glasses $1,299.99
Meta used Connect 2026 to launch camera-free Ray-Ban Meta Audio glasses at $349 shipping 13 October, put Ray-Ban Meta Gen 3 on sale at $449 the same day, and preview 100-gram Meta VR Glasses at $1,299.99 for spring 2027.
The details
- Ray-Ban Meta Audio, announced at Meta Connect 2026 on 23 September 2026, is Meta's first pair of AI glasses without cameras.
- Meta states that Ray-Ban Meta Audio weighs 43 grams and starts at $349 USD, with pre-orders open at announcement and shipping from 13 October 2026.
- Meta lists up to 12 hours of battery life on a single charge for Ray-Ban Meta Audio, plus up to 48 further hours from the included charging case.
- Ray-Ban Meta Audio is offered in 23 colour and lens combinations across two frame styles, Clubmaster and Burbank.
- Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 3) went on sale on 23 September 2026 with prices starting at $449 USD.
- Meta says Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 3) delivers up to nine hours of battery life, one hour more than Gen 2, and uses a new 6-microphone array that cuts more than 90% of background noise.
- Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 3) is sold in Aviator, Zena and Wayfarer frame styles across 27 colour and lens combinations.
- Meta VR Glasses weigh about 100 grams and will cost $1,299.99 USD when they launch in spring 2027.
- Meta VR Glasses use a 5K Infinite Display built on micro-OLED panels at 37 pixels per degree, driven by Qualcomm's Snapdragon Reality Elite processor in a tethered compute puck.
- Meta states the VR Glasses puck provides up to three hours of continuous high-resolution media playback and supports 45W fast charging.
Why it matters
Meta is splitting its eyewear line by price and purpose rather than pushing one flagship: a cheaper camera-free tier that removes the privacy objection that has dogged smart glasses, and a camera model above it. The VR Glasses show the same logic applied to headsets, moving the processor and battery off the face into a puck to reach roughly a fifth of a Quest 3's weight, at a price that puts it well above current mainstream VR.