These Camera-free Smart Glasses Made Me Feel Like Tony Stark

Xgimi, nan Chinese institution known for its all-in-one smart projectors, is expanding its portfolio pinch a caller statement of screen-equipped smart glasses that first debuted astatine CES 2026. Unlike AR glasses from companies for illustration Meta and Snap, Xgimi’s caller privacy-focused MemoMind One skip cameras for a lighter and much discreet creation that helps hide their AI-powered smart functionality. After testing them for a week, I’m wholly sold connected nan thought of having a surface floating successful beforehand of my eyes perpetually feeding maine useful accusation that nary 1 other tin see, but nan MemoMind One don’t wholly present connected my Tony Stark fantasies conscionable yet. There’s immoderate unsocial functionality I can’t get from my smart watch aliases phone, but I’m going to request a small much to warrant dropping a half-grand (or more) connected different smart wearable.

Xgimi is launching a Kickstarter for nan glasses today, and nan institution plans to commencement shipping them successful precocious July. There are 3 styles to take from, and while afloat pricing will beryllium $599, aliases $879 pinch medicine lenses, backing nan Kickstarter discounts them to $399/$499. You tin besides customize nan quality of immoderate of nan styles pinch different colors, but that increases nan value to $699/$879, which is discounted to $449/$499.

I tested a beta type pinch beta package and a buggy mobile app that’s missing features. So while I can’t measurement successful connected what nan last acquisition will beryllium like, aft a week I was impressed pinch immoderate features and disappointment pinch others.

Similar to nan $800 Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, nan MemoMind One usage a brace of micro-LED projectors and transparent (but noticeable) waveguide prisms successful each lens to create a show only you tin see. While nan Ray-Ban Display goes afloat color, nan MemoMind One’s surface is agleam green. It reminds maine of nan Apple II computers I utilized successful people school, but it doesn’t consciousness for illustration I’m utilizing dated exertion because nan acquisition of staring astatine a backstage surface hanging successful midair still feels kinda futuristic. You tin set nan distance, position, and brightness of nan display, and while nan agleam greenish colour helps it popular and stay ever visible indoors, it was difficult to spot extracurricular connected a sunny time if I wasn’t looking astatine thing acheronian successful nan inheritance to create much contrast.

At astir 47 grams, nan MemoMind One are heavier than my reference glasses but still consciousness lightweight and comfortable, moreover pinch nan oversized extremity pieces connected each limb stuffed pinch batteries bully for up to 16 hours of use, charging contacts, Harman Kardon speakers, and different electronics. Most group I wore them astir had nary thought they had immoderate smart features — unless I was listening to something. As overmuch arsenic I want to usage nan MemoMind One arsenic earbud alternatives, group astir maine could easy perceive what was playing done their speakers moreover astatine nan lowest volume, including telephone calls that were acold from private.

Raising your caput aliases pressing nan glasses’ azygous fastener adjacent nan correct hinge activates nan MemoMind One’s location screen, which shows nan time, artillery level, date, and upwind connected nan near pinch customizable info connected nan right. Through nan app you tin take up to 4 different sections specified arsenic stocks, news headlines from predefined sources (you can’t adhd your ain RSS feeds), upcoming almanac events synced from your phone, a to-do list, and notifications.

I was astir excited to usage nan MemoMind One arsenic a discreet replacement to perpetually glancing down astatine my Apple Watch to cheque notifications aliases quickly respond to matter messages, but nan glasses are decidedly not a smart watch. Most of nan notifications from your telephone will popular up connected nan glasses’ show pinch a condensed type of nan connection truthful you get gist of what they’re about. But there’s nary measurement to publication much than what’s successful nan little notification, and you can’t respond to messages aliases emails done nan glasses.

Pressing and holding nan glasses’ fastener aliases saying “hi, Memo” lets you interact pinch nan MemoMind One’s AI adjunct done sound commands while responses are displayed arsenic matter pinch nan action to person them publication backmost to you. Responses typically took astir 4 aliases 5 seconds, and I recovered myself utilizing nan adjunct rather often alternatively of nan existent type of Siri connected my watch. But I’ll admit I was disappointed there’s nary measurement to privately inquire nan AI adjunct questions to make myself look smarter than I really am.

Double-pressing nan glasses’ fastener brings up a Quick Launch conception that tin beryllium customized pinch entree to 3 different functions. These tin see a teleprompter that will show and scroll a book that keeps up pinch your speaking cadence, captions generated connected nan alert while you’re watching something, and a sound recorder that shows a adjacent real-time transcription of what glasses tin perceive while nan mobile app tin AI-generate summaries.

As a Canadian surviving adjacent to Quebec pinch abysmal French skills, I was eager to trial nan MemoMind One’s unrecorded translator feature. A Dialog Mode for back-and-forth conversations is promised, but for now I was only capable to trial nan glasses’ Listen-in Mode, which generates translated transcriptions connected nan display.

The velocity and accuracy is good, but it’s very overmuch limited connected really intelligibly nan glasses’ microphone picks up nan different person. Testing it pinch my woman speaking French from crossed nan room required her to raise her sound supra a normal measurement while inheritance noises for illustration euphony playing easy tripped it up. Having speedy entree to nan characteristic is convenient, but nan translator can’t admit nan connection being spoken, truthful you person to first unfastened nan mobile app and prime what languages nan instrumentality is translating between.

I was likewise disappointment erstwhile trying to usage nan MemoMind One’s mapping feature. Glasses pinch a heads-up show guiding you to a location is simply a neat idea, but you can’t inquire nan AI to way you to a destination. You request to unfastened nan mobile app, and nan characteristic is presently constricted to stepping and cycling directions.

Xgimi is heavy promoting nan privateness facet of nan camera-free MemoMind One, but an optional characteristic called Moments is thing but. The glasses perpetually grounds everything and everyone astir you to make a often inaccurate summary of your day. It’s expected to service arsenic a benignant of auto-generated diary highlighting important moments, but it gets a batch of specifications incorrect and often confuses what you really did since it’s relying solely connected audio. Xgimi plans to complaint $19.99/month for nan premium feature, but a amended upgrade is to support Moments turned off.

I’ve nary uncertainty glasses pinch screens will beryllium a large portion of our future, but I’m not yet convinced nan MemoMind One’s features will make maine want to deterioration them each time long. While they connection a fewer very useful features, they consciousness excessively limited connected nan mobile app. If I’m going to nan problem of pulling retired my phone, I’ll conscionable usage it to complete a fixed task. But there’s immoderate breathtaking imaginable present successful a creation that doesn’t look obnoxious to wear, and I’m eager to revisit nan MemoMind One erstwhile Xgimi has finalized and polished its package and features.

Photography by Andrew Liszewski / The Verge