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It is commonly believed that Meta has taken a significant lead over other companies in the head-mounted wearables market, putting Apple at risk of falling behind. However, an analyst from Oppenheimer maintains that while Meta’s advancements are notable, they do not yet pose a threat to Apple. Despite this, doubts persist regarding the long-term viability of Apple’s smart glasses ambitions.
Meta recently unveiled the Ray-Ban Display smart glasses at its Connect 2025 conference. These glasses feature an in-built display capable of reading text and watching small videos, with a resolution of 42 pixels per degree (ppd), surpassing Meta’s other consumer VR headsets. They also offer brightness up to 5,000 nits and support live translations. The Ray-Ban Display will be available for $799 starting from September 30, along with the Meta Neural Band for controlling the glasses using hand gestures.
Meta has also launched the second generation of its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses (without an in-built display). These glasses have twice the battery life, offering up to eight hours of mixed use and two hours of continuous live AI support. They can record ultra HD 3K videos and soon will feature a custom noise cancellation system called conversation focus.
In another development, Meta introduced Oakley’s Vanguard smart AI glasses focused on athletics. These glasses integrate with Garmin watches and cycling computers for real-time insights and alerts. They also support 3K UHD video recording via a 12 MP camera.
Oppenheimer analyst Martin Yang analyzed the Ray-Ban Display’s specifications and concluded that Meta is not offering an SDK for third-party developers to build dedicated apps for this hardware. For now, the device will be most useful when paired with a smartphone, running both Meta’s 1P apps and third-party app information (music, messaging) on smartphones.
While impressive, the Ray-Ban Display is less capable than Orion smart glasses from Meta’s Connect 2024 conference, which included augmented reality lenses and eye tracking. Yang noted that the Ray-Ban Display uses less proprietary parts like LCoS microdisplay from Omnivision and reflective waveguide from Lumus, as opposed to the more proprietary components used in Orion.
Additionally, the Ray-Ban Display weighs about 67 grams, which could be uncomfortable for many users. Analyst Yang expects sales of between 150,000 and 200,000 units over two years, not enough to categorize it as a mainstream product.
However, Apple abandoned its AR glasses project after Meta’s Orion unveiling. Furthermore, the Vision Pro, priced at $3,499, has struggled due to low sales (approximately 500,000 units) and lack of compelling use cases. Given these challenges, we argue that Apple’s ecosystem remains under threat from Meta.
In conclusion, despite Oppenheimer’s assertion, the competition between Apple and Meta is far from over.
