Best smart glasses under $400: cheap AI glasses and what you give up

The cheapest current-model smart glasses with a camera cost $249, Meta's Adventurer. Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 starts at $379, Oakley Meta HSTN at $399, and Rokid and Brilliant Labs sell $399 pairs too. Under $400 you can buy a camera and an assistant or an audio-only pair. A display in the lens is rare at this price: of the AI glasses covered here, only Brilliant Labs' Halo has one. Plug-in glasses that show a big virtual screen start at $299.

Prices are US list prices as of Oct. 25, 2026, before prescription lenses. This guide is based on each company's US store, announcements and published specifications, as recorded in our price guides, and we haven't tested the glasses.

Quick picks

Affordable AI glasses under $400 compared

Cheapest camera glasses: Meta Adventurer, $249

Meta launched its own-brand Meta Glasses line on June 23 from $299. Since Oct. 23, a black Adventurer with gray lenses and a plug-in case has sold for $249, which Meta calls "our most accessible price yet." The line shares an action button, open-ear speakers, a multi-microphone array with wind noise reduction, a camera for hands-free photos and video and Meta AI. Meta's compare page lists a 12MP camera with a 100-degree field of view and video up to 3K for the Adventurer LISA Edition, the same as the Gen 3 Wayfarer. The pages we read give no separate camera specs for the $249 version.

What you give up is mostly the case and the prescription range, and it has no display. Notebookcheck reported that the plug-in case has no battery of its own, unlike the foldable case on the $299 version that adds up to 40 hours, and Meta gives no separate battery figure for this pair. Best Buy's FAQ lists -6.00 to +2.25 for Meta Glasses, against -12.00 to +6.00 on most Ray-Ban Meta frames. This is the pair for someone who wants to try camera glasses at the lowest price and doesn't need a wide prescription. Our Meta Glasses guide covers the line, including the $399 Kylie Jenner and LISA editions.

Best all-rounder under $400: Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2, from $379

Gen 2 launched on Sept. 17, 2025, and Ray-Ban's US store still listed it from $379 on Oct. 25, $70 below Gen 3. On paper the camera matches Gen 3: 12MP, video up to 3K at 30 frames per second and 32GB of storage, with an IPX4 water rating. It lasts up to eight hours on a charge, and its case adds up to 48 hours. Gen 2 comes in Wayfarer, Skyler and Headliner styles, and Meta's help center lists -12.00 to +6.00 for prescriptions. Our Gen 3 vs Gen 2 comparison notes that Meta hasn't said Gen 2 is being retired.

For $70 more, Gen 3 adds an hour of battery, a sixth microphone, an action button and the Aviator and Zena styles. Gen 2 suits buyers who want Ray-Ban frames with a -12.00 to +6.00 prescription range without paying for those extras. It has no display, and the Neural Band wristband comes only with the $799 Meta Ray-Ban Display.

Sport: Oakley Meta HSTN, from $399

HSTN has a 12MP camera, 3K video, an IPX4 rating and up to eight hours of battery with up to 48 more from the case. Oakley sells it at $399 with Prizm or clear lenses, $449 with Prizm Polarized and $479 with Transitions. Oakley lists its prescription range as -6.00 to +4.00, while the FAQ on Best Buy's Meta page lists -12.00 to +6.00, as our Oakley Meta prescription guide explains. Garmin and Strava list it among supported glasses. HSTN is the pair for everyday wear and casual sport. Against the $499 Vanguard it gives up the IP67 rating, the centered camera and an hour of battery. Against Ray-Ban Meta, Oakley's own figures give it a narrower prescription range. Our Oakley Meta guide compares the two models.

Audio only: Ray-Ban Meta Audio, $349

Audio has no camera, weighs as little as 43 grams and is rated for up to 12 hours, with up to 48 more from the case, the longest battery rating in the Ray-Ban Meta range. It has six microphones, an IPX4 rating and Meta AI for music, calls and live translation in 20 languages, and it ships in Clubmaster and Burbank styles. What you give up is everything that needs a camera: photos, video, questions about what you're looking at and Live AI. Audio is for people who want music, calls and an assistant without a camera on their face. Our Ray-Ban Meta Audio guide has the details.

Amazon's Echo Frames, the other mainstream camera-free pair, launched from $269.99 in 2023, but Amazon's listings showed no price and said "Currently unavailable" on Oct. 25, so we don't rank them.

Other $399 pairs: Rokid Style and Brilliant Labs Halo

Rokid AI Glasses Style keeps a camera and drops the display. It weighs 38.5 grams and has open-ear audio and an assistant that works with several platforms, including ChatGPT and DeepSeek, according to Rokid. The regular price is $399, and Rokid's fall sale page showed a $299 event price on Oct. 25. Rokid said on Feb. 2 that Style is sold through its website and Amazon US and had passed 15,000 units. Rokid also says its online prescription service covers myopia, astigmatism, presbyopia and progressive lenses. Style is aimed at buyers who want a light camera pair and a choice of assistants. Rokid publishes no battery rating for it, and it doesn't run Meta AI. See our Rokid guide.

Brilliant Labs' Halo is open-source AI glasses at $399 with a 0.2-inch color display, a 640 x 480 color camera, bone conduction speakers and a weight of just over 40 grams. Brilliant claims 14 hours of battery, and its display adjusts from +2 to -6 diopters. Its documentation lists the Noa app as "coming soon," and returns that aren't for a defect carry a $49 restocking fee. Halo is for developers and tinkerers, and what it gives up is camera quality: 640 x 480 against the 12MP on Ray-Ban Meta. Our Halo guide covers what is open source.

Screen glasses under $400: XREAL, Viture and RayNeo

Plug-in glasses show a phone, laptop or console screen as a large virtual display, and the prices below come from the XREAL, Viture and RayNeo stores. They have no camera or assistant built in, and the pages we read list no battery for them. The source needs to send DisplayPort video over USB-C.

On Oct. 29, 2026, XREAL's US store page for the One listed it at $399 but showed a back-in-stock sign-up and gave no restock date.

RayNeo's store also lists older Air models from $149, marked down. These are screens, so you give up the assistant and the camera that AI glasses carry. Our XREAL vs Viture comparison and RayNeo guide have the full specs.

Cheaper still: Ray-Ban's last Gen 1 pairs

Ray-Ban's US store lists its final first-generation pairs as "last chance" stock from $224 to $284. Gen 1 has a 12MP camera and 1080p video, lasts up to four hours with up to 32 more from the case, and is IPX4. Meta hasn't said when Gen 1 will stop getting software updates, according to our firmware guide. Our Gen 2 vs Gen 1 comparison lists the differences.

What the pricier models add

Meta Ray-Ban Display is rated for up to six hours, less than Meta's other camera glasses, so its price pays for the screen and the Neural Band.

Where to buy, sales and prescriptions

Prices move, and the sellers differ on try-on and return windows. Our guide to where to buy Ray-Ban Meta glasses compares Meta, Ray-Ban, Best Buy, Amazon and the optical chains, and covers buying a used pair. Ray-Ban was taking 46% off its prescription lens prices on Oct. 25, according to our price guide.

Prescription lenses cost extra and can push a pair past $400. On Ray-Ban's lens menu for a Gen 3 Wayfarer Optics frame, clear single-vision lenses listed at $225. Best Buy's FAQ says a prescription pair may qualify for vision insurance reimbursement or FSA and HSA funds. See our FSA, HSA and insurance guide before you order.