Google and Samsung took the world by storm with their surprise Android XR glasses announcement – which was complete with an impressive prototype demonstration at a TED 2025 event – but you don’t need to wait until 2026 (which is when the glasses are rumored to be launching) to try some excellent XR smart glasses for yourself.
In fact, we’ve just updated our best smart glasses guide with two fantastic new options that you can pick up right now. This includes a new entry in our number one slot for the best AR specs you can buy (the Xreal One glasses) and a new pick in our best affordable smart glasses slot called the RayNeo Air 3S glasses.
Admittedly these specs aren’t quite what Google and Samsung are boasting the Android XR glasses will be, but the Xreal and RayNeo glasses are more for entertainment – you connect them to a compatible phone, laptop or console to enjoy your film, TV or gaming content on a giant virtual screen wherever you are – and they’re damn good at what they do.
What’s more they’re a lot less pricey than the Android XR glasses are likely to be (based on pricing rumors for the similar Ray-Ban Meta AR glasses), so if you’re looking to dip your toes into the world of AR before it takes off then these two glasses will serve you well.
The best of the best
So, let’s start with the Xreal One glasses: our new number one pick, that are easily the best of the best AR smart glasses around.
As I mentioned before these smart specs are perfect for entertainment – both on-the-go and at-home (say in a cramped apartment, or when you want to relax in bed). You simply connect them to a compatible device via their USB-C cable and you watch your favorite show, film, or game play out on a giant virtual screen that functions like your own private cinema.
This feature appears on other AR smart glasses, but the Xreal One experience is on another level thanks to the full-HD 120Hz OLED screens, which boast up to 600-nits of brightness. This allows the glasses to produce vibrant images that have superb contrast for watching dark scenes.
Image quality is further improved by electrochromically-dimmable lenses – lenses which can be darkened or brightened via electrical input that you can toggle with a switch on the glasses.
At their clearest the lenses allow you to easily see what’s going on around you, while at their darkest the lenses serve as the perfect backdrop to whatever you’re watching – blocking out most errant external light that would ruin their near-perfect picture.
Beyond their picture, these glasses are also impressive thanks to their speakers which are the best I’ve heard from smart glasses.
With sound tuned by Bose (creators of some of the best headphones around) the Xreal One glasses can deliver full-bodied audio across highs, midtones and bass.
You will find that using a separate pair of headphones can still elevate your audio experience (especially because they leak less sound than these glasses will), however, these are the first smart glasses I’ve tested where a pair of cans feels like an optional add-on rather than an essential accessory.
Couple all that with a superb design that’s both functional, and fairly fashionable, and you’ve got a stellar pair of AR glasses. Things get even better if you snag a pair with an Xreal Beam Pro (an Android spatial computer which turns your glasses into a complete package, rather than a phone accessory).
Plus, it only looks set to get better with the upcoming Xreal Eye add-on which will allow the glasses to take first-person photos and videos, and which may help unlock some new spatial computing powers, if we’re lucky.
The best on a budget (but still awesome)
At $499 / £449 the Xreal One glasses are a little pricey. If you’re on a budget you’ll want to try the RayNeo Air 3S glasses instead.
These smart glasses cost just $269 (around £205 / AU$435). For that you’ll get access to their 650-nit full-HD micro-OLED setup that produces great images and audio that doesn’t necessitate a pair of headphones.
They’re a lot like the Xreal One glasses, but do boast a few downgrades as you might expect.
The audio performance isn’t quite as impressive. It’s fine without headphones but isn’t quite as rich as Xreal’s alternative, and it’s more leaky (so if you use these while travelling your fellow passengers may hear what’s going on too).
What’s more, while on paper their image quality should be better than the Xreal glasses the overall result isn’t quite as vibrant because the reflective lenses the glasses use as a backdrop aren’t as effective as the electrochromic dimming used by the Xreal Ones.
This allows more light to sneak through the backdrop leading to image clarity issues (such as the picture appearing washed out) if you’re trying to use the glasses in a brighter environment.
They also lack any kind of camera add-on option if that’s a feature you care about.
But these glasses are still very impressive, as are the specs, and I think most people should buy them because their value proposition is simply so fantastic.
Whether you pick the Xreal One glasses of RayNeo Air 3S smart glasses you’ll be in for a treat – and if you love the taste of AR they provide you’ll have a better idea of whether the Android XR and other AR glasses will be worth your time.
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