I Tried Google’s Screen-Free Smart Glasses, and They’re Exactly What I Want
I Tried Google’s Screen-Free Smart Glasses, and They’re Exactly What I Want
https://www.pcmag.com/opinions/googles-screen-free-smart-glasses-are-exactly-what-i-want
Publish Date: 2026-05-20 19:36:00
Source Domain: www.pcmag.com
MOUNTAIN VIEW—During the Google IO 2026 keynote, Google announced its full push into smart glasses. The company has partnered with fashionable spectacle makers Gentle Monster and Warby Parker to develop wearable face devices with cameras, microphones, and speakers. The glasses can speak to you, summarize notifications and text, play music, and answer questions about whatever is in your line of sight. It’s effectively the playbook from the Ray-Ban Metas, which I actually used at the conference to capture content.
But after a mostly screen-free demonstration with a pair of Warby Parker Android XR glasses, I realize access to Gemini will be one of the main selling points—and not just because Google is pushing this agentic future. If you have more than one Android device, it becomes a semi-synchronized dance between devices. It’s almost like it’s meant to lure you into a waltz with the ecosystem.
A Quick Demo With Android XR
(Credit: Florence Ion)
I got to wear a pair of “in-progress” Warby Parker smart glasses with a single internal display, though most of the demonstration was audio-only. The first bit involved asking Gemini to play a song through YouTube Music. I asked for horsegiirL—well, first I asked for it on Spotify, then it offered it to me on YouTube Music, since this is all “in progress” and integrations haven’t been entirely sorted yet. Regardless, Google assured me Spotify will be available to control through Android XR at launch.
One of the things I enjoy most about the Ray-Ban Metas is the ability to play music almost ambiently. However, it’s whispery enough that I’ve forgotten the glasses have speakers in them and mistook the music for something off in the distance rather than right on my temple. Google’s Warby Parker glasses have a little more presence; I could hear the bass from horsegiirL’s hard-core track thump even in the raucous outdoor press room.
(Credit: Florence Ion)
Then came the camera portion of the…
