*

Smartglasses sales tripled in 2025, but mainstream

adoption lags

*

Meta's advanced AI-powered eyewear priced at $799, simpler

models at $300-400

*

Privacy, comfort, and price concerns hinder wider adoption

By Nicholas P. Brown

NEW YORK, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Early tech adopters are

gobbling up smartglasses like Thanksgiving turkey - especially

Meta's new, retro-chic version with a visual display in the

lens. But concerns about price, privacy, and the comfort of

wearing a computer on one's face are giving mainstream shoppers

pause this holiday season.

Meta and partner EssilorLuxottica's "smart" Ray-Bans

and Oakleys, which first launched in 2023, have captured the

tech world's attention by answering calls, taking pictures and

playing music. The latest model - the Meta Ray-Ban Display -

includes a visual display in the right lens, and connects users

to AI.

U.S. smartglasses sales tripled year-over-year in 2025,

according to market research firm Circana - great news for a

type of gadget that crashed and burned after Google's ill-fated

'glass' experiment in 2013, and which has been trying to regain

respect ever since.

Holiday sales this season will likely dwarf the $52.6 million

U.S. shoppers spent on smart glasses in the final quarter of

2024, said Ben Arnold, a consumer technology industry analyst

with Circana. Analysts expect tech companies like Apple and

Samsung to release their own smartglass products soon.

John Paul Stewart, a New York City resident, was intrigued

enough to visit a Meta Lab store in Manhattan last week, one of

dozens of consumers crowding around display cases or receiving

demos of the glasses from Meta workers. But he found the glasses

a little heavy.

"I don't know how comfortable it's going to be, like, to

wear them for a long period of time," said Stewart, 51. "I feel

like I'm going to wait for one more generation."

About 25% of respondents surveyed by CivicScience - a

consumer research firm that embeds survey questions in news,

lifestyle and entertainment websites - recently said they are

interested in trying smartglasses, up from 20% early this year.

Smartglasses ownership now is about where smartwatches were

in 2017, and interest is rising, CivicScience surveys show.

Still, "We're not quite there" in terms of mainstream

adoption, said Avi Greengart, a tech industry analyst who runs

market analysis firm Techsponential.

"Long term, who knows? We'll all be cyborgs."

A spokeswoman for Meta declined to comment on how many

Displays have been sold, or how many will be produced for the

holidays. The Displays - which sell for $799 before adding

prescription lenses - will not be discounted for Black Friday or

Cyber Monday, the spokeswoman added.

EssilorLuxottica did not immediately respond to questions

about the availability and pricing of the smartglasses this

holiday season.

GROWTH SURGING

The Display - Meta's most advanced AI-powered eyewear -

comes with a smartphone-like display in the right lens, and an

accompanying bracelet that tracks hand movements. With pinches

and thumb flicks, users can scroll through apps to play music,

converse with AI, record video, and even translate languages in

real time.

Simpler and more widely available Ray-Ban Meta models, which

lack a visual display, sell for $300-400. EssilorLuxottica said

in February it had sold more than 2 million pairs of Ray-Ban

Meta smartglasses since launching them in September 2023, and

now says it's on track to raise production capacity to 10

million units a year by the end of 2026.

User Silvia Rendon - speaking remotely on her "Displays" -

says she uses the glasses in her job as a San Antonio

schoolteacher. Rendon, 42, was so keen for hands-free access to

AI during classroom lessons that she bought her Displays at a

huge markup on eBay - spending $1,200 - after they sold out at

stores.

Greg Dow, 62, said he is considering a purchase, but worries

about who might be able to access tracking data. "I think there

is big potential to misuse the technology," Dow said.

For some, including 48-year-old Iliak Castro, price poses a

barrier.

"Maybe," he said with a smile, "I'll ask Santa for some."