Week 44, Oct 26–30, 2026: Xreal Aura goes on sale, senators question Meta on privacy, Rokid brings full color to fifty-five grams

Cold open

ArgusThe first Android XR glasses went on sale this week, two hundred dollars below their list price.

IrisIn Washington, two senators sent Meta a letter with detailed questions about privacy.

ArgusAnd Rokid showed full color glasses that weigh fifty-five grams.

Intro

IrisThis is Smart Glasses Weekly for the week of October twenty-sixth to thirtieth. 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: Xreal Aura arrives, Meta faces questions from the Senate and files more patents, and Rokid's Jungle event in Hangzhou.

Topic 1: Xreal

IrisFirst, Xreal. Thirty-two stories from twenty-one outlets this week, the most of any maker. Aura went on sale at Android Dev Summit. It runs Android XR and connects by cable to a compute puck. Road to VR, nine to five Google and Mogura VR all covered it.

ArgusThe price is one thousand ninety-nine dollars for orders placed this year, against a list price of one thousand two hundred seventy-nine. Shipping is expected in mid-November.

IrisGoogle says more than one hundred fifty experiences are built for it, and Road to VR reports Fallout Factions arrives next month.

ArgusFrandroid notes that Europe is not part of the launch. Japan comes next, and its limited price has not been announced.

Topic 2: Meta

IrisSecond, Meta. Engadget reports that Senators Ron Wyden and Edward Markey wrote to Mark Zuckerberg about privacy and safety risks from Meta's AI glasses.

ArgusThey ask about accidental camera activation, tampering with the recording light, and whether faces and license plates are blurred. Meta's response is not yet public.

IrisPatentlyze tracked four new Meta filings: batteries shaped to fit slimmer frames, cameras around the frame that capture three dimensional video, an AI that draws a control panel on request, and suggestions for which sensor clothing to wear.

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

IrisMeta also announced a partnership with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, to support Canadians living with sight loss or deafblindness.

Topic 3: Rokid

IrisThird, Rokid, with a launch the Chinese tech press followed closely. At its Jungle event in Hangzhou on Tuesday, the company showed three products. VRTuoLuo, ITHome and LEDinside all covered it.

ArgusThe Rokid Color has full color micro LED displays and weighs fifty-five grams. It starts at four thousand nine hundred ninety-nine yuan, and ITHome says it ships from April next year.

IrisVRTuoLuo tried it and saw no obvious color cast. One light engine feeds both eyes, which limits three dimensional display, and the founder told VRTuoLuo that still has problems to solve.

ArgusRokid Glasses Two has two chips and Dolby Audio, from three thousand six hundred ninety-nine yuan. A smart ring at one thousand six hundred ninety-nine yuan adds gesture control and health tracking.

IrisLEDinside noted that RayNeo announced its full color iO Plus the same day.

Across the makers

ArgusNow, across the makers. Samsung first. SamMobile reports its glasses may go on sale in the United States and Korea in December. That is a report, not an announcement.

IrisPatentlyze tracked Samsung filings too: a camera that the hinge slides into the frame when the arms fold, and a fix for washed out colors on see-through lenses. Sony filed one for recycling stray light to brighten a display.

ArgusEven Realities updated the G Two with a Conversate Pro Mode, according to nine to five Google, and Mogura VR reports the footballer Keisuke Honda is its new brand ambassador.

IrisOne more on rules. ITHome reports South Korea plans to extend the ban for cheating with smart glasses on its university entrance exam from one year to three.

Use case of the week

IrisOur use case of the week. Mogura VR reports that surgeons at Institute of Science Tokyo Hospital used Xreal One Pro glasses during a bladder cancer operation in September. The endoscope feed appeared in the surgeon's view, while the hands and the room stayed visible through the lenses.

ArgusThis is one operation, and the operation was completed successfully. The research project runs through twenty twenty-nine.

The week ahead

IrisThe week ahead. On Monday, November second, Xreal Aura goes on sale in Japan. On Wednesday, November fourth, INMO holds a launch event for its full color glasses, according to VRTuoLuo. On Thursday, Even Realities holds Even Day in San Francisco, a developer event where registration needs the host's approval.

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.