mart glasses without a front-facing camera used to look like a clean escape from the wrist-bound attention economy, yet the second generation of Even Realities proves that adding hardware does not automatically equal progress. Last year's model earned praise for projecting data directly through waveguide prisms in the lenses without looking like a bulky prop from a low-budget sci-fi film, but the newest iteration introduces a control philosophy that manages to complicate the simplest daily routines. Instead of refining what already worked brilliantly, the makers decided to bundle a separate ceramic control ring that turns a straightforward notification reader into an exercise in daily frustration.
The base model costs $599 in both Panto and Rectangle styles, offering a choice of grey, brown or green colorways, while prescription lenses add at least $159 and can climb as high as $349 depending on the strength you need. On paper, the physical improvements are hard to ignore compared to the first generation. Even Realities managed to lift the waveguide prism resolution to 640 x 350, up from 640 x 200, alongside a wider field of view of 27.5 degrees, up from 25. The display also boasts a faster refresh rate of 60Hz, up from 20Hz on the original, and a higher peak brightness of 1,200 nits, up from 1,000 nits. Four microphones now replace the two found on the original, and the physical build gains an IP65-rated dust and water ingress resistance that makes light rain far less terrifying than it used to be.
The base model is $599 in both Panto and Rectangle styles.
Yet the structural changes do not stop at the frame, because the introduction of on-device touchpads on the temple tips creates an awkward physical dynamic. Placing control surfaces behind your ears helps balance the weight and keeps the arms from getting too chunky, but operating them from such a position feels rather goofy in public spaces. This exact ergonomic dilemma likely prompted Even Realities to adopt the smart ring trend as an alternative control scheme, but that addition introduces an entirely new layer of friction.
The Even R1 smart ring is a separate purchase that tacks an extra $249 onto the cost of your Even G2, and it strictly refuses to work with anything other than this specific second-generation pair of glasses. Crafted out of zirconia ceramic with a prominently stamped Even Realities logo on a raised promontory to help you navigate by feel alone, the ring is IP68-certified and features a four-day battery life while tracking activity, steps, heart-rate, HRV, SpO2, body temperature and sleep duration. All of these health stats pump straight to the G2 to display wellness signals in your eyeline alongside an aggregated productivity score.
In daily use, however, controlling your glasses through a narrow ring touchpad rarely delivers the smooth, effortless experience promised by the marketing materials. Narrow touchpad surfaces can typically register only four distinct inputs: a swipe up, a swipe down, a tap, and a press, creating a control scheme only slightly more sophisticated than a standard pair of wireless earbuds. When attempting to open the main menu via a tap and long press on either the ring or touchpad, the hardware frequently misinterprets long presses as swipes and vice versa. That constant misinterpretation kills your enthusiasm for cycling through menus when you keep inadvertently opening apps you meant to scroll past.
Specifications
Release date: not announced
Price: $599 in the US
Manufacturer website: https://www.evenrealities.com
Specs:
- Display resolution — 640 x 350
- Field of view — 27.5 degrees
- Refresh rate — 60Hz
- Peak brightness — 1,200 nits
- Microphones — 4
- Water and dust rating — IP65 for glasses, IP68 for ring
- Smart ring battery life — 4 days
- Price — $599 base plus $249 for Even R1
Pros and Cons
- Brighter 1,200-nit display and sharper 640 x 350 resolution make text much easier to read outdoors than the first generation
- Four built-in microphones improve voice pick-up for on-the-go queries
- IP65 water and dust resistance on the frame removes the fear of sudden rain
- The mandatory or companion Even R1 smart ring costs an extra $249 and relies on an overly finicky touch surface
- Gestures frequently misinterpret long presses as swipes, turning basic navigation into a guessing game
Alternatives
- Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses: Priced around $299, they feature integrated cameras and open-ear speakers with a mature voice assistant, though they lack any visual heads-up display inside the lenses
- First-generation Even Realities G1: Available on the secondary market or older stock, they lack the high-res 60Hz screen of the G2 but avoid the frustrating ring-based control scheme entirely
Who It Suits and Who It Does Not
- Suits early adopters who already wear prescription eyewear and want crisp, heads-up notifications floating in their field of view without looking like a cyborg
- Does not suit anyone looking for a reliable, frustration-free fitness tracker or users who hate juggling separate proprietary accessories just to navigate simple menus
Verdict
Even Realities built a genuinely better display into the G2, but ruined the everyday experience by tying navigation to an expensive, half-baked smart ring. At $599 for the base frame plus another $249 for the R1 ring, you are paying a hefty premium for an interface that fights you at every turn. Skip this generation unless you are deeply committed to troubleshooting ring gestures over morning coffee.