After months of waiting the moment is here: Meta AI features have arrived on the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses for everyone – well, everyone in the US and Canada, for now.
The exclusivity to those regions is not the only caveat unfortunately. Another big one is that while the Meta AI tools are no longer locked behind an exclusive beta, Meta notes in its blog post announcement that they are still beta features – suggesting that you’ll likely run into several problems with regard to reliability and accuracy.
But while the update isn’t quite as complete as we’d have liked, it’s still a major leap forward for Meta’s smart glasses – finally having them deliver on the impressive AI promises Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg made when they were revealed back at Meta Connect 2023 in September last year.
What can Meta AI do?
(Image credit: Ray-Ban / Meta)
The main Meta AI feature you’ll want to take advantage of is ‘Look and Ask.’ To activate it simply start a phrase with “Hey Meta, look and …” then ask the glasses a question about something you can see.
You could try “… tell me about this animal,” or “…tell me about this building,” or even “…tell me what I can make for dinner with these ingredients.”
The glasses will then use your command alongside an image captured by the camera to search for an answer in its database – which include data the Meta AI has been trained on, and information it has gathered from Google and Bing.
As with all AI responses, we’d recommend taking what the Meta AI says with a pinch of salt. AI assistants are prone to hallucinating – which in the AI context you can read simply as “getting stuff completely wrong” – and this Meta model is no different. It will get stuff right too, but don’t take its advice as gospel.
(Image credit: Meta)
Beyond Look and Ask you can use the Meta AI assistant like the Google or Siri assistant on your phone. This means starting video calls (above), sending texts and images, or playing music all with just voice commands.
Just be prepared to get some attention as you walk around talking to your smart glasses – we got some odd looks when we were testing a different pair of specs the other day.
The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are still waiting on their big AI update – which is set to bring features like ‘Look and Ask’ out of the exclusive beta and bring them to everyone – but while we wait, a useful upgrade has just rolled out to the specs.
The big feature for many will be native Apple Music controls (via 9to5Mac). Previously you could play Apple Music through the Ray-Ban Meta glasses by using the app on your phone and touch controls on the glass’ arms, but this update allows you to use the Meta AI voice controls to play songs, playlists, albums, and stations from your music library for a hands-free experience.
The update also brings new touch controls. You touch and hold the side of the glasses to have Apple Music automatically play tracks based on your listening history.
(Image credit: Brett Jordan / Unsplash)
Beyond Apple Music integration, the new update also allows you to use the glasses as a video source for WhatsApp and Messenger calls. This improves on pre-existing interoperability that allows you to send messages, and images or videos you captured using the glasses to contacts in these apps using the Meta AI.
You can also access a new command, “Hey Meta, what song is this?” to have your glasses tell you what song is playing through your smart specs. This isn’t quite as useful as recognizing tracks that are playing in public as you walk around, but could be handy if you like collecting playlists of new and unfamiliar artists.
To update your glasses to the latest version, simply go to the Meta View App, go to Settings, open the Your Glasses menu option, then Updates. You’ll also want to have your glasses to hand and make sure they’re turned on and connected to your phone via Bluetooth. If you can’t see the update – and your phone says it isn’t already on version 4.0 – then check the Play Store or App Store to see if the Meta View app itself needs an update.
It’s a big day for Quest users. Meta has announced it’s giving third-party companies open access to its headsets' operating system to expand the technology. The tech giant wants developers to take the OS, expand into other frontiers, and accomplish two main goals: give consumers more choice in the virtual reality gaming market and give developers a chance to reach a wider audience.
Among this first batch of partners, some are already working on a Quest device. First off, ASUS’ ROG (Republic of Gamers) is said to be developing “an all-new performance gaming headset.” Lenovo’s on the list too and they’re seemingly working on three individual models: one for productivity, one for education, and one for entertainment.
This past December, Xbox Cloud Gaming landed on Quest headsets as a beta bringing a wave of new games to the hardware. Microsoft is teaming up with Meta again “to create a limited-edition Meta Quest [headset], inspired by Xbox.”
New philosophy
Meta is also making several name changes befitting their tech’s transformation.
The operating system will now be known as Horizon OS. The company’s Meta Quest Store will be renamed the Horizon Store, and the mobile app will eventually be rebranded as the Horizon app. To aid with the transition, third-party devs are set to receive a spatial app framework to bring their software over to Horizon OS or help them create a new product.
With Horizon at the core of this ecosystem, Meta aims to introduce social features that dev teams “can integrate… into their [software]”. They aim to bridge multiple platforms together creating a network existing “across mixed reality, mobile, and desktop devices.” Users will be able to move their avatars, friend groups, and more onto other “virtual spaces”.
This design philosophy was echoed by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. In a recent Instagram video, Zuckerberg stated he wants Horizon OS to be an open playground where developers can come in and freely create software rather than a walled garden similar to iOS.
Breaking down barriers
It’ll be a while until we see any of these headsets launch. Zuckerberg said in his post that “it’s probably going to take a couple of years for these” products to launch. At the moment, Meta is “removing the barriers” between its App Lab and digital storefront allowing devs to publish software on the platform as long as they meet “basic technical and content” guidelines. It’s unknown if there'll be any more limitations apart from requiring third-party companies to use Snapdragon processors.
No word if other tech brands will join in. Zuckerberg says he hopes to see the Horizon Store offer lots of software options from Steam, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and even apps from the Google Play Store – “if they’re up for it.” It seems Google isn’t on board with Horizon OS yet.
Rumors have been circulating these past several months claiming Google and Samsung are working together on an XR/VR headset. Perhaps the two are ignoring Meta’s calls to focus on their “so-called Apple Vision Pro rival”.
From now until April 28 at 11:59 PM PT (April 29 at 07:59 AM BST) you can pick up a whole host of VR games and apps at a bargain price. There are lots of fantastic option to choose from, but I've selected eight deals worth considering.
If you want to find more suggestions you can check out our best VR games list.
If I’m doing a VR game roundup, I’m going to include Walkabout Mini Golf because it’s without a doubt my favorite VR experience. I think you should buy this game at full price so while it’s discounted it’s a no-brainer.
The courses are varied and gorgeous, the mechanics feel true to life, and it offers a superb multiplier experience to boot. But honestly just stop reading this and go buy it if you haven’t already (then come back and keep reading for more suggestions).
Dungeons of Eternity is an action-packed dungeon crawler with an addictive combination of excellent physics-based combat with a satisfying gameplay loop that has you exploring, well, dungeons filled with monsters.
What really takes this game up a level is its multiplayer mode. Just grab a few friends and you can tackle the hordes of terrors together – and you might get a little fitter in the process as this was one of a personal trainer's recommended VR titles for people looking to try VR fitness.
What's even better is that this is a big discount, so it's a great time to finally try Dungeons of Eternity if you haven't already.
This VR puzzle game is my favorite for people after a more serious experience – combining an intriguing tale of mystery with a host of engaging mechanics.
Your goal is to restore the Clocktower’s gardens to grow different fruits using a small army of robots that mimic your movements – all while you search for the missing Clockwinder. Simply record an action and an automaton will spawn to recreate what you did on a loop; by chaining these robots you’ll create complex sequences to solve the various puzzles in your way.
What makes The Last Clockwinder fun for puzzle fans like myself is that while each mission can be completed using as many robots as you can spawn, there are in-game challenges and rewards encouraging you to be as efficient as possible.
This means novices can always find a solution, but experts will have a real challenge finding an optimal solution – which often requires precise movements and out-of-the-box thinking.
This VR multiplayer game is a perfect choice for people who want to enjoy VR together but only have one headset.
One player – the person in VR – can see a complex bomb with various puzzle modules that must be solved in order to deactivate it. The other player (or players) can see a complex manual – much of which may be irrelevant to the virtual bomb you’re trying to defuse. By working together the duo must defuse the explosive before a timer runs out or making too many mistakes.
It’s chaotic, it’s fun, and right now it’s on sale for a great price.
If you’ve ever wanted to be James Bond – though at times you may feel more like Austin Powers – then this virtual escape room series is what you need. Brimming with all the spy tropes under the sun (complete with kickass theme songs I have in my playlist) this game series is an absolute delight to play through – it’s one of those VR games everyone should play.
This double pack includes the first and second games at a discounted price, but if you already own one or both you can pick up all three games in the series individually for a lower-than-normal price:
This VR shooter roguelike has you fighting through a dark world of corrupted soldiers and monsters. If you fail – and you will – you can retry your mission but be careful as the dungeon you’re adventuring through will have a different layout every time you enter.
The Light Brigade is adrenaline-inducing in all the right ways, with semi-realistic World War I-era weapons to handle, a diverse range of formidable foes, and a great selection of classes you can switch between – each with a unique style of gameplay. As you progress, you can upgrade your soldier’s abilities to make future runs a little easier.
I adore The Light Brigade – every time I boot it up I binge it for hours on end – and at this price, it’s a certified must-play.
I love social deduction games – be they board games like Secret Hitler and Coup, or video games like Town of Salem and Among Us – and this VR version is an absolute riot.
The first-person perspective and proximity chat make the experience feel way more immersive (read: it’s a lot scarier being a crewmate), and meetings are a lot more engaging compared to using the flat game’s text-chat option – though chat-only VR lobbies are available.
For only $ 7.49 / £5.99 Among Us VR is a steal that you should definitely pick up.
This is the only game on this list I haven’t played – ignoring an early-access demo I tried when I first gave the Meta Quest 3 a whirl – but I’ve heard great things about it and it’s been on my to-play list for some time.
Nexus lets you play as the series’ most iconic Assassins in VR recreations of iconic locations from the original games. I’ve been told that at times it can be a little janky, but the combat and parkour experience are good enough for it to stick the landing on helping you live out your dream of joining the Brotherhood.
This isn’t the biggest discount in the world, but considering this is a pricey game to begin with we’ll take any discount we can get.
That’s because the VR version of the video-sharing platform now supports 8K video playback on Quest 3 – up from the previous max of 4K.
To turn it on make sure you’re running YouTube VR app version 1.54 or later, then boot up a video that supports 8K, tap on the gear icon, and where it says Quality you want to change the resolution to 4320p – or 4320p60 if you want 8K at 60fps instead of the usual 30fps. If 4320p isn’t an option in this list unfortunately the video you want to watch isn’t streaming in 8K.
There are a few extra caveats. First, you’ll want a strong internet connection, because even if the video supports 8K playback you’ll struggle to stream it over weak WiFi – unless you like waiting for it to buffer. Oh, and one other important detail; the Quest 3 doesn’t have 8K displays. But that's not as big a problem as it might seem.
Method in the 8K madness
The Quest 3 has two displays (one for each eye) that boast 2,064 x 2,208 pixels each; 8K resolution is 7,680 × 4,320 pixels. Even if we combine the two displays they still boast only just over 25% as many pixels as an 8K display.
So is 8K streaming pointless? Well, not entirely.
Spatial video is 3D, but not as immersive as 360 video (Image credit: Meta)
For flat YouTube videos, playing them in 8K probably is worthless on Quest hardware. The only advantage you might find is that you’ll be seeing a downscaled video – the opposite of upscaled, where a higher resolution source is played at a lower resolution – which can sometimes lead to a more detailed image than simply streaming a video at the lower resolution.
The real improvement can be found instead with immersive 360-degree videos.
To explain things simply: when you see a flat video you see the whole resolution in that 16:9 frame. In 360 videos the resolution is spread across a much larger image, and you only see portions of that image based on where you’re looking. That’s why – if you’ve watched 360 videos in VR – 4K content can look more like HD, and HD content can look like blurry messes.
By bumping things up to 8K you’ll find that immersive 3D video should look a lot more crisp – as the sections you’re looking at are now effectively 4K. So while you're not seeing 8K, you're still getting a higher resolution.
This update may also be a good future-proofing update for the next Meta hardware. With rumors that a Meta Quest Pro 2 could up the display game for Quest hardware, there’s a chance that it'll get closer to having actual 8K displays, though we’ll have to wait and see.
After a handful of rumors and speculation suggested Meta was working on a pair of AR glasses, it unceremoniously confirmed that Meta AR glasses are on the way – doing so via a short section at the end of a blog post celebrating the 10th anniversary of Reality Labs (the division behind its AR/VR tech).
While not much is known about them, the glasses were described as a product merging Meta’s XR hardware with its developing Meta AI software to “deliver the best of both worlds” in a sleek wearable package.
We’ve collected all the leaks, rumors, and some of our informed speculation in this one place so you can get up to speed on everything you need to know about the teased Meta AR glasses. Let’s get into it.
Meta AR glasses: Price
We’ll keep this section brief as right now it’s hard to predict how much a pair of Meta AR glasses might cost because we know so little about them – and no leakers have given a ballpark estimate either.
Current smart glasses like the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses, or the Xreal Air 2 AR smart glasses will set you back between $ 300 to $ 500 / £300 to £500 / AU$ 450 to AU$ 800; Meta’s teased specs, however, sound more advanced than what we have currently.
Meta’s glasses could cost as much as Google Glass (Image credit: Future)
As such, the Meta AR glasses might cost nearer $ 1,500 (around £1,200 / AU$ 2300) – which is what the Google Glass smart glasses launched at.
A higher price seems more likely given the AR glasses novelty, and the fact Meta would need to create small yet powerful hardware to cram into them – a combo that typically leads to higher prices.
We’ll have to wait and see what gets leaked and officially revealed in the future.
Meta AR glasses: Release date
Unlike price, several leaks have pointed to when we might get our hands – or I suppose eyeballs – on Meta’s AR glasses. Unfortunately, we might be waiting until 2027.
That’s according to a leaked Meta internal roadmap shared by The Verge back in March 2023. The document explained that a precursor pair of specs with a display will apparently arrive in 2025, with ‘proper’ AR smart glasses due in 2027.
(Image credit: Meta)
In February 2024 Business Insider cited unnamed sources who said a pair of true AR glasses could be shown off at this year’s Meta Connect conference. However, that doesn’t mean they’ll launch sooner than 2027. While Connect does highlight soon-to-release Meta tech, the company takes the opportunity to show off stuff coming further down the pipeline too. So, its demo of Project Orion (as those who claim to be in the know call it) could be one of those ‘you’ll get this when it’s ready’ kind of teasers.
Obviously, leaks should be taken with a pinch of salt. Meta could have brought the release of its specs forward, or pushed it back depending on a multitude of technological factors – we won’t know until Meta officially announces more details. Considering it has teased the specs suggests their release is at least a matter of when not if.
Meta AR glasses: Specs and features
We haven't heard anything about the hardware you’ll find in Meta’s AR glasses, but we have a few ideas of what we’ll probably see from them based on Meta’s existing tech and partnerships.
Meta and LG recently confirmed that they’ll be partnering to bring OLED panels to Meta’s headsets, and we expect they’ll bring OLED screens to its AR glasses too. OLED displays appear in other AR smart glasses so it would make sense if Meta followed suit.
Additionally, we anticipate that Meta’s AR glasses will use a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset just like Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses. Currently, that’s the AR1 Gen 1, though considering Meta’s AR specs aren’t due until 2027 it seems more likely they’d be powered by a next-gen chipset – either an AR2 Gen 1 or an AR1 Gen 2.
The AR glasses could let you bust ghost wherever you go (Image credit: Meta)
As for features, Meta’s already teased the two standouts: AR and AI abilities.
What this means in actual terms is yet to be seen but imagine virtual activities like being able to set up an AR Beat Saber jam wherever you go, an interactive HUD when you’re navigating from one place to another, or interactive elements that you and other users can see and manipulate together – either for work or play.
AI-wise, Meta is giving us a sneak peek of what's coming via its current smart glasses. That is you can speak to its Meta AI to ask it a variety of questions and for advice just as you can other generative AI but in a more conversational way as you use your voice.
It also has a unique ability, Look and Ask, which is like a combination of ChatGPT and Google Lens. This allows the specs to snap a picture of what’s in front of you to inform your question, allowing you to ask it to translate a sign you can see, for a recipe using ingredients in your fridge, or what the name of a plant is so you can find out how best to care for it.
The AI features are currently in beta but are set to launch properly soon. And while they seem a little imperfect right now, we’ll likely only see them get better in the coming years – meaning we could see something very impressive by 2027 when the AR specs are expected to arrive.
Meta AR glasses: What we want to see
A slick Ray-Ban-like design
The design of the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses is great (Image credit: Meta)
While Meta’s smart specs aren't amazing in every way – more on that down below – they are practically perfect in the design department. The classic Ray-Ban shape is sleek, they’re lightweight, super comfy to wear all day, and the charging case is not only practical, it's gorgeous.
While it’s likely Ray-Ban and Meta will continue their partnership to develop future smart glasses – and by extension the teased AR glasses – there’s no guarantee. But if Meta’s reading this, we really hope that you keep working with Ray-Ban so that your future glasses have the same high-quality look and feel that we’ve come to adore.
If the partnership does end, we'd like Meta to at least take cues from what Ray-Ban has taught it to keep the design game on point.
Swappable lenses
We want to change our lenses Meta! (Image credit: Meta)
While we will rave about Meta’s smart glasses design we’ll admit there’s one flaw that we hope future models (like the AR glasses) improve on; they need easily swappable lenses.
While a handsome pair of shades will be faultless for your summer vacations, they won’t serve you well in dark and dreary winters. If we could easily change our Meta glasses from sunglasses to clear lenses as needed then we’d wear them a lot more frequently – as it stands, they’re left gathering dust most months because it just isn’t the right weather.
As the glasses get smarter, more useful, and pricier (as we expect will be the case with the AR glasses) they need to be a gadget we can wear all year round, not just when the sun's out.
Speakers you can (quietly) rave too
These open ear headphones are amazing, Meta take notes (Image credit: Future)
Hardware-wise the main upgrade we want to see in Meta’s AR glasses is better speakers. Currently, the speakers housed in each arm of the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are pretty darn disappointing – they can leak a fair amount of noise, the bass is practically nonexistent and the overall sonic performance is put to shame by even basic over-the-ears headphones.
We know open-ear designs can be a struggle to get the balance right with. But when we’ve been spoiled by open-ear options like the JBL SoundGear Sense – that have an astounding ability to deliver great sound and let you hear the real world clearly (we often forget we’re wearing them) – we’ve come to expect a lot and are disappointed when gadgets don’t deliver.
The camera could also get some improvements, but we expect the AR glasses won’t be as content creation-focused as Meta’s existing smart glasses – so we’re less concerned about this aspect getting an upgrade compared to their audio capabilities.
We could be on the cusp of a whole new realm of AI large language models and chatbots thanks to Meta’s Llama 3 and OpenAI’s GPT-5, as both companies emphasize the hard work going into making these bots more human.
In an event earlier this week, Meta reiterated that Llama 3 will be rolling out to the public in the coming weeks, with Meta’s president of global affairs Nick Clegg stating that we should expect the large language model “Within the next month, actually less, hopefully in a very short period, we hope to start rolling out our new suite of next-generation foundation models, Llama 3.”
Meta’s large language models are publicly available, allowing developers and researchers free and open access to the tech to create their bots or conduct research on various aspects of artificial intelligence. The models are trained on a plethora of text-based information, and Llama 3 promises much more impressive capabilities than the current model.
No official date for Meta’s Llama 3 or OpenAI’s GPT-5 has been announced just yet, but we can safely assume the models will make an appearance in the coming weeks.
Smarten Up
Joelle Pineau, the vice president of AI research at Meta noted that “We are hard at work in figuring out how to get these models not just to talk, but actually to reason, to plan . . . to have memory.” Openai’s chief operating officer Brad Lightcap told the Finacial Times in an interview that the next GPT version would show progress in solving difficult queries with reasoning.
So, it seems the next big push with these AI bots will be introducing the human element of reasoning and for lack of a better term, ‘thinking’. Lightcap also said “We’re going to start to see AI that can take on more complex tasks in a more sophisticated way,” adding “ We’re just starting to scratch the surface on the ability that these models have to reason.”
As tech companies like OpenAI and Meta continue working on more sophisticated and ‘lifelike’ human interfaces, it is both exciting and somewhat unnerving to think about a chatbot that can ‘think’ with reason and memory. Tools like Midjourney and Sora have championed just how good AI can be in terms of quality output, and Google Gemini and ChatGPT are great examples of how helpful text-based bots can be in the everyday.
With so many ethical and moral concerns still unaddressed with the current tools available right now as they are, I dread to think what kind of nefarious things could be done with more human AI models. Plus, you must admit it’s all starting to feel a little bit like the start of a sci-fi horror story.
Update v64 is here for your Meta Quest 3 and other Quest hardware, and it adds a big quality-of-life improvement for fans of mixed reality: better passthrough.
According to Meta’s official blog, the update has made the Quest 3’s passthrough “higher-fidelity than before”, resulting in your headset being better at adjusting color, exposure, contrast, and dynamic range to best suit your real-world environment.
These updates should make it easier to read text on screens, and to use the headset in darker rooms.
We’ve tested the improved feature out, and it does seem easier to read text on real-world screens, and Meta’s claim that it’s less grainy in low light seems to ring true as well. That said, in general the passthrough doesn’t seem massively improved – so while it is better, don’t go in expecting ultra-crisp, Apple Vision Pro-levels of mixed-reality passthrough quality.
(Image credit: Meta)
Can you hear me now?
Beyond upgraded passthrough, update v64 brings with it a few additional refinements to your VR headset’s software.
The first is that your Quest device can now support an external microphone – with the feature appearing in the experimental settings menu. Once you’ve toggled it on you’ll be able to plug in an external microphone via the USB-C port to capture audio for VR content creation or in-game chat instead of using the Quest 3’s built-in mic.
Following its addition last month for Oculus Quest 2 users, Meta Quest 3 users can now use their headsets lying down too.
What’s more, Continuous Casting has been added. Previously, if you removed your headset while casting to your phone the session would end, and Meta admitted that more often than not users would rather keep it running rather than have to restart every time they wanted to take their headset off (say to take a drink or talk to someone). So now if you remove your headset while casting the session won’t be cut short – just make sure that you stop casting manually using your phone when you’re done.
Meta’s Reality Labs division – the team behind its VR hardware and software efforts – has turned 10 years old, and to celebrate the company has released a blog post outlining its decade-long history. However, while a trip down memory lane is fun, the most interesting part came right at the end, as Meta teased its next major new hardware release: its first-ever pair of AR glasses.
According to the blog post, these specs would merge the currently distinct product pathways Meta’s Reality Labs has developed – specifically, melding its AR and VR hardware (such as the Meta Quest 3) with the form factor and AI capabilities of its Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses to, as Meta puts it, “deliver the best of both worlds.”
Importantly for all you Quest fans out there, Meta adds that its AR glasses wouldn’t replace its mixed-reality headsets. Instead, it sees them being the smartphones to the headsets’ laptop/desktop computers – suggesting that the glasses will offer solid performance in a sleek form factor, but with less oomph than you’d get from a headset.
Before we get too excited, though, Meta hasn’t said when these AR specs will be released – and unfortunately they might still be a few years away.
When might we see Meta’s AR glasses?
A report from The Verge back in March 2023 shared an apparent Meta Reality Labs roadmap that suggested the company wanted to release a pair of smart glasses with a display in 2025, followed by a pair of 'proper' AR smart glasses in 2027.
We’re ready for Meta’s next big hardware release (Image credit: Meta)
However, while we may have to wait some time to put these things on our heads, we might get a look at them in the next year or so,
A later report that dropped in February this year, this time via Business Insider, cited unnamed sources who said a pair of true AR glasses would be demoed at this year’s Meta Connect conference. Dubbed 'Orion' by those who claim to be in the know, the specs would combine Meta’s XR (a catchall for VR, AR, and MR) and AI efforts – which is exactly what Meta described in its recent blog post.
As always, we should take rumors with a pinch of salt, but given that this latest teaser came via Meta itself it’s somewhat safe to assume that Meta AR glasses are a matter of when, not if. And boy are we excited.
We want Meta AR glasses, and we want ‘em now
Currently Meta has two main hardware lines: its VR headsets and its smart glasses. And while it’s rumored to be working on new entries to both – such as a budget Meta Quest 3 Lite, a high-end Meta Quest Pro 2, and the aforementioned third-generation Ray-Ban glasses with a screen – these AR glasses would be its first big new hardware line since it launched the Ray-Ban Stories in 2021.
And the picture Meta has painted of its AR glasses is sublime.
Firstly, while Meta’s current Ray-Ban smart glasses aren’t yet the smartest, a lot of major AI upgrades are currently in beta – and should be launching properly soon.
The Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are set to get way better with AI (Image credit: Future / Philip Berne)
Its Look and Ask feature combines the intelligence of ChatGPT – or in this instance its in-house Meta AI – with the image-analysis abilities of an app like Google Lens. This apparently lets you identify animals, discover facts about landmarks, and help you plan a meal based on the ingredients you have – it all sounds very sci-fi, and actually useful, unlike some AI applications.
We then take those AI-abilities and combine them with Meta’s first-class Quest platform, which is home to the best software and developers working in the XR space.
While many apps likely couldn’t be ported to the new system due to hardware restrictions – as the glasses might not offer controllers, will probably be AR-only, and might be too small to offer as powerful a chipset or as much RAM as its Quest hardware – we hope that plenty will make their way over. And Meta’s existing partners would plausibly develop all-new AR software to take advantage of the new system.
Based on the many Quest 3 games and apps we’ve tried, even if just a few of the best make their way to the specs they’d help make Meta’s new product feel instantly useful. a factor that’s a must for any new gadget.
Lastly, we’d hopefully see Meta’s glasses adopt the single-best Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses feature: their design. These things are gorgeous, comfortable, and their charging case is the perfect combination of fashion and function.
We couldn’t ask for better-looking smart specs than these (Image credit: Meta)
Give us everything we have already design-wise, and throw in interchangeable lenses so we aren’t stuck with sunglasses all year round – which in the UK where I'm based are only usable for about two weeks a year – and the AR glasses could be perfect.
We’ll just have to wait and see what Meta shows off, either at this year’s Meta Connect or in the future – and as soon as they're ready for prime time, we’ll certainly be ready to test them.
Meta is prompting Meta Quest 3 and Oculus Quest 2 users to verify their birthday before they can use their VR headsets. This helps it verify the age on your account so it can serve you appropriate content – and give your parent or guardian access to tools and account protections, if necessary.
This also isn’t just one of those popups you can ignore. Once you’ve been asked to verify your age you’ll have 30 days to do so according to the official page. Once the time limit expires your account will be blocked – and restrictions will only be lifted when you provide your birthday.
You don’t want to rush through the process either. If you enter the wrong date, changing it can be a pain. Scroll down for more information, but the TL;DR version is that you’ll need a credit card or an ID to make any alterations – and getting stuck with the wrong account age could cause problems depending what apps and social settings you like to use.
These changes follow Meta asking app developers to self-identify what age category their apps are suitable for – either Preteen, Teen, or Adult – and after its request for age verification to be built into mobile app stores like the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Speaking to The Verge, Meta's Global Head of Safety Antigone Davis explained that Meta’s practicing what it preaches by implementing these changes to the Quest platform.
You’ll need to verify your age on Quest to use your VR headset (Image credit: Meta)
What does your age mean for your Meta account?
There are three types of Meta Quest account, and you’re assigned one based on your age.
The most restricted are Preteen accounts – for users aged 10 to 12. Also known as Parent-managed accounts, if you’re 10, 11, or 12 you’ll need a parent or guardian to set up their account so they can approve yours. All of your profile settings are set to private by default, and if you want to change this, or download or use an app, you’ll need your parent’s permission.
Then there are Teen accounts for people aged 13 to 17. Profile settings are still set to private by default, but you have the power to change them – you don’t need a parent or guardian’s approval. Instead your parent can set up supervision tools that offer a way for them to customize your experience without needing to be involved in every decision.
Lastly, Adult accounts are for users 18 or over and you’re given complete control over your profile settings and what apps you want to use.
How do I change my birthday on Quest?
(Image credit: Meta)
If you’ve inputted the wrong birthday or one that’s different from the one that’s already on your account then we have some good news, and some bad news. The good news is you can change it – the bad news is you’ll need a credit card or an ID (such as a driver’s license, school ID or state ID) so Meta can make sure you’re telling the truth.
Using a credit card is faster according to Meta’s Verification page, but it will need to make a charge – which is refunded. If you’d rather not have Meta take your money – even temporarily – you can use the ID verification method though this will apparently take longer to verify. Though we don’t know exactly how long this verification process takes in either case.
Whichever option you choose, Meta has said it doesn’t store the information for long after it completes the age verification.
If you can’t verify your age then you can choose to stick with your newly-entered birthday and be sorted into the Teen or Preteen account brackets – though this will mean there will be some restrictions on your account.
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