The Ray-Ban Stories are a fine first attempt at smart glasses by Facebook. It’s great that the company teamed up with a brand people will actually want to wear. The glasses were first reported by CNBC in 2019, but Facebook is hardly the first company to roll out a pair of smart glasses. Social-media rival Snap launched its first Spectacles devices in 2016, and the ill-fated Google Glass devices launched way back in 2013. An iconic leader in sunglasses and prescription eyewear for generations, Ray-Ban remains a top brand in the eyewear industry with authentic styles like the Aviator and Wayfarer. With an 80-year history in American pop culture, public figures and celebrities have worn the world-famous Ray-Ban shades as a symbol of self-expression and an effortlessly cool look.
They charge when you set them in the carrying case, which Facebook says gives three full charges. You won’t realize they’re special Ray-Bans unless you’re looking specifically for the two cameras on the corner of the device’s frames. You’ll be able to buy Ray-Ban Stories today in 20 different styles in the US, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy and the UK.
As ambitious as they may seem, Ray-Ban Stories are also yet another example of how Facebook seemingly can’t help but imitate Snapchat, which has been dabbling in smart glasses since 2016. Even their name hearkens back to the social story format that Snap kicked off and was later copied by Facebook, Instagram and pretty much every other social media outfit. But at this point, I don’t ray ban new wayfarer think Facebook cares if everyone calls them copycats if it ultimately leads to more engagement. And, well, we know how much Mark Zuckerberg wants to transform it into a “metaverse company.” As with any new device, we have a big responsibility to help people feel comfortable and provide peace of mind, and that goes not only for device owners but the people around them, too.
Despite creating various unique collections over the years, the Ray-Ban Aviator and Wayfarer are the two most sought-after models by far. Popularized by pilots in the 1930s, the Aviator collection soon became associated with the classic American style. The Aviator design has gone virtually unchanged since its debut. The collection is still recognized by its signature lens bridge. As for content moderation, Facebook spokespeople say that the same rules apply for the glasses as they do for any other content creation tool.
Prizm lenses come in both polarized and non-polarized options, plus there are sport-specific Prizms that cater to the visual environments of each activity. For example, Prizm Golf lenses enhance greens and browns while Prizm Deep Water ray ban new wayfarer filters out blues, adding reds and greens for better contrast on the open ocean. What you might not know is that Chromance lenses use the same technology as Oakley’s Prizm (courtesy of the fact that they’re both Luxottica companies).
Chromance lenses are made out of polycarbonate and enhance color and details so your world looks more vivid and high-def. They are also polarized and have anti-reflective coating to reduce glare. 3-point fit touches your head on your nose and behind both earsOakley’s signature straight temple arms work because the temple tips hug your head rather than holding on behind your ears. You’ll also find several wraparound shield frames in addition to low-profile half-rim sports sunglasses, whereas the majority of Ray-Bans are full-rim frames. Oakley makes frames with the same basic components, but they also create their own proprietary materials like the lightweight, indestructible O Matter™ frame and Unobtainium™ temple and nosepad grips. For Hollywood royalty or a rock n’ roll vibe that will dazzle poolside or make a fashion statement for a night on the town, Ray-Ban is where it’s at.
Because it’s not an in-ear speaker, you can hear some outside noise — I find this actually great for walking around when you do want to be slightly aware of your surroundings, and it’s probably also great for biking. For clarity’s sake, I will herein refer to Ray-Ban Stories as “Facebook glasses,” because that’s exactly what I know you are thinking when you read this. The words “Facebook” and “glasses” are making the hair on the back of your neck stand up, right?
The video and photos are stored locally on your phone, not sent into Facebook’s servers or the cloud. Basically, if you don’t choose to post those photos to Facebook, Facebook can’t see them or have anything to do with them, which is probably what you want. Well, if you buy Facebook glasses, I don’t really know what you want. Ray-Ban Stories can take photos and videos with a touch of a button and send them to your phone. On sunny days I do wear sunglasses when I play tennis so it was an added bonus that I could take videos while hitting groundstrokes and volleys.
While I didn’t expect much when it comes to audio playback, the Stories surprised me with sound that was good enough for listening to light tunes or podcasts. I could see them being particularly useful while jogging or biking outdoors, where you want to maintain situational awareness. During the day, I’m never too far from my wireless earbuds, but being able to get a bit of audio from my glasses in a pinch could be genuinely useful. Keep an eye here for more details on regular software updates as we continue to improve the experience over time. Through design iterations, months of planning, and international collaboration between our teams at Facebook and EssilorLuxottica , we were able to pull it off.
Eyeglasses.com is different from all other online eyewear companies, because we provide a higher level of service. This includes a Perfect Lenses Guarantee, 30-day full refund on frames and sunglasses, and support through phone, email, and live chat. These services are expensive, and they are not provided by other online suppliers, so we offer a limited price matching service. When choosing a pair of sunglasses, it all comes down to form and function.