Week 43, Oct 19–23, 2026: New Meta patents and a strong review for camera-free Ray-Bans, a Google game for Xreal Aura, Snap names Robert Downey Jr.

Cold open

ArgusThis week Snap hired Iron Man. Well, the actor. Robert Downey Junior is now the honorary chief customer experience officer of Specs.

IrisThe new title comes with a brief: help shape what people can do with the glasses.

ArgusAnd Meta's latest filings include glasses that switch off their microphones where recording is not allowed.

Intro

IrisThis is Smart Glasses Weekly for the week of October nineteenth to twenty-third. I'm Iris.

ArgusI'm Argus. We are AI hosts, and every story you hear links back to the people who reported it, at smartglasses dot today.

IrisComing up: new Meta patent filings and a strong review for its camera-free pair, a Google game and a China launch for Xreal, and Snap's very famous new hire.

Topic 1: Meta

IrisFirst, Meta. WIRED reviewed Ray-Ban Meta Audio, the pair with no camera at all, and its headline calls them the best smart glasses.

ArgusLast week reviewers said they did not miss the camera. This week WIRED goes a step further.

IrisAnd on nine to five Google, a runner who wanted a dashcam found the camera pair did the job.

ArgusThe biggest stack of Meta news was patents. Patentlyze tracked several filings: microphones that switch off in places where recording is not allowed, a tiny scanning mirror for the display, processors built directly behind a micro display, and a lens that survives being dropped.

IrisAnd VRTuoLuo reported one more, for glasses that spot the best moments of an outdoor activity and cut them into a highlight video.

ArgusAs always, a patent shows what a company is exploring. Not every filing becomes a product.

Topic 2: Xreal

IrisSecond, Xreal. Owlchemy Labs, the Google studio behind Job Simulator, announced Hyper Visor, an arcade shooter that launches first on Xreal Aura. Road to VR, Mogura VR and VRTuoLuo covered it.

ArgusA Google studio picking Xreal's glasses first is the interesting part. Aura runs Android XR, so this is Google seeding its own platform.

IrisIn China, ITHome reports the One Pro Plus is now on sale at three thousand four hundred ninety-nine yuan, with the brighter display and redesigned nose pads we covered last week.

ArgusAnd VRTuoLuo published a long look at Xreal's last six months as the company pushes toward a stock market listing.

Topic 3: Snap

IrisThird, Snap. Snap named Robert Downey Junior the honorary chief customer experience officer of Specs, its AR glasses. Road to VR, nine to five Google and Auganix all covered it, and Road to VR says he will help develop experiences for the glasses.

ArgusSnap has not yet detailed what the role involves day to day.

IrisThe coverage outside America focused on price. In France, Zero One Net put Specs at two thousand two hundred ninety-five euros, and VRTuoLuo reports a starting price of two thousand one hundred ninety-five dollars.

ArgusFor most buyers, the price is the detail to watch next, alongside the partnership.

Across the makers

ArgusNow, across the makers. Samsung first, and more patents. Patentlyze tracked Samsung filings for glasses that tint glare and billboards while you drive, glasses that can tell a mirror from the real room, and smaller display pixels.

IrisAndroid Authority ran an opinion piece from a writer who has never owned smart glasses, but says Samsung's Android XR pair might change that. Samsung has not yet announced a price or a date.

ArgusAnd Even Realities. Engadget published its review of the G Two, with the controls as its main focus.

Use case of the week

IrisOur use case of the week. Mogura VR reports that a live Hatsune Miku event brought in about two hundred Xreal AR glasses, with the visuals synced across every pair in real time.

ArgusTwo hundred pairs at one show is a large deployment for a live event. Details on how the audience experienced it may follow.

The week ahead

IrisThe week ahead. On Tuesday, October twenty-seventh, Rokid holds its Jungle event in Hangzhou. The same day, the AI plus AR Smart Glasses Industry Expo opens in Shenzhen and runs through the twenty-ninth. And in Mountain View, California, the Computer History Museum's extended reality exhibition stays open into March.

Sign-off

IrisThat is the week. The full transcript and every source are at smartglasses dot today.

ArgusIf this was useful, follow Smart Glasses Weekly on Spotify. That is the only thing we will ask.

IrisBack next Friday.

ArgusSee you then.