Amazon Echo Frames (newest model), Smart glasses with Alexa+ Early Access, Round frames in Blue Tortoise with polarized sunglass lenses

These frames are great the quality of the sunglasses is amazing. Charging is a bit tricky at first but works great and holds the frames perfectly. The speakers are impressive for such a small footprint and I love that they are outside my ear. The quick connection and setup makes these my new go to shades

First off: I purchased the Echo Frames Gen 2 when they were first released. Most of the following is done in comparison to that version. = Multiple Device Support ======================= One feature missing from Gen 2 (that these have) is support for dual devices. This is the ONE thing about Gen 3 that is preferred over Gen 2. = Audio ==================================== The new frames do sound better, however there are some serious trade offs that come with this... First off, the speakers sound much quieter in a loud room. Auto volume control has been removed. Volume rocker no longer beeps, so changing volume without audio actively playing is a literal crap shoot. There are also a number of glitches that randomly occur: 1. At random sound only comes out on 1 stem. 2. At random sound will be out of sync (one stem will play the sound slightly ahead of the other, creating an echo like effect). = Silencing Notifications ======================== The ability to mute notifications is completely removed. If you are going to be listening to music or an audio book, you're getting notifications along with that. The only way to fully stop notifications is to turn the frames off. Unfortunately this is now a difficult process. Turning them off requires removal of the frames, then holding down 2 buttons at once for 10 seconds. For those less dexterous (like myself), this requires both hands. This process is highly problematic, sometimes dangerous, and in some cases literally even illegal: 1. On the annoyance side of things, I was talking to a coworker when my wife started texting me. I had to mentally tune out the notifications since I couldn't stop them. 2. As for danger: A few weeks back on my way to work, my co-workers started a back and forth on the teams app, and I got an ongoing flood of notifications. I then opted to turn the glasses off, which requires removal of the glasses (I can legally drive without my glasses, for those who can't this is literally already illegal). I then had to use both hands (hard to do while still operating a steering wheel) to hold down the 2 power off buttons for 10 seconds. In my case, really bad timing had the car next to me change lanes without looking while I was still holding both buttons. I did manage to swerve, but it easily could have been tragic. * Note that amazon support contacted me on posting about the near accident, but in the end said they would pass the information on for possible use in future products. The removal of mute function OR the time and complexity added in powering them off alone would have been manageable. The fact they did BOTH was a really, REALLY bad idea. = Form Factor =============================== The physical design is noticeably different than Gen 2, with caveats: 1. Lenses, though close to Gen 2, cannot be transferred into these (so new lenses is a must). 2. They are noticeably smaller than Gen 2. I have a big head so the stems squeeze my head, leaving visible dents on either side of my head once removed (Gen 2 fit me comfortably). 3. I'm not happy with the end of the stem design. They barely make contact with my ears at all and are constantly sliding down my nose as a result. = Phone Calls =============================== These still work as bluetooth headsets for calls, with one downgrade which I REALLY don't understand. These frames do NOT remember contact info! On my Gen 2 frames I frequently used eyes to call my wife. The very first use I did have to provide identifying information ONCE. From that point forward, it was a breeze: Me: "Alexa, call my wife" Alexa: "Ok" (then dials) No fuss, no muss, it worked. THIS version goes through the following routine EVERY SINGLE TIME: Me: "Alexa, call my wife" Alexa: "Did you mean wife?" Me: "Yes" Alexa: "What is your wife's full name?" Me: "[wife's name]" Alexa: "Do you know your wife's full phone number?" Me: "Yes" Alexa: "What is the phone number" Me: "[wife's phone number]" (then dials) THIS IS EVERY TIME WITHOUT FAIL! If I immediacy ask Alexa to call my wife again, it's the ENTIRE routine all over again!!! This one makes me shake my head, how did this fail this far? = Charging ================================= Gen 2 used a magnetic cable. This may not have been elegant, but it worked. I bought several cables, always having one close by to charge. And you could even charge while wearing them (which I did on occasion). The new frames use a large charging cradle, with drawbacks: 1. The charge stand looks like it wants to be a piece of modern art. 2. It's too big to be portable. 3. No way to wear them while charging them 4. It also fails to charge far too often... I've gone to get my frames on multiple occasions only to see a red light on the stand indicating they didn't charge overnight... One occasion I had to remove and re-place them on the charge stand a good 10 to 15 times until the light stayed on without turning red. = Dual Pairing =============================== As mentioned above, this is the one new feature I like, but it too has an annoyance... If I turn my ipad off, I get a notification beep, a verbal indication it lost connection (keeping in mind they're still connected to my phone so still functional), and a blue blinking light on the side of the frames that continues indefinitely until I either power the ipad back on, or power cycle the frames. = Action Buttons ============================= Gen 2 had one action button, and a tap & swipe support on the stem, and it worked fairly well (and also managed to support both muting notifications, and single button power off). The dual button design on these, having 2 button next to each-other on the stem has lead me on more than one occasion to push the wrong action button (the difference between answering a call or rejecting it). = Final Thoughts ============================= I get the feeling the design team on these really didn't do much testing. So many things are worse than the previous generation. The question as to why I'm wearing them: Frames and lenses put me over $500 in the hole. It was also time for me to get new lenses, so I can see better with these. My hope for the future is Gen 4 goes back to the Gen 2 frames with added multi-device support.

I absolutely love these sunglasses. I originally purchased the blue light lens glasses to wear for day to day use, but recently snagged these sunglasses as well and am so happy with them. As a new mom, they are perfect for stroller walks with my daughter and being on the go with her. The sound quality is fantastic and great for listening to music or taking calls. I also love being able to utilize Alexa when on the go and outside. I never want to wear earbuds or headphones when I'm with my daughter as I want to make sure I can hear her, but it's always such a pain to try to take a call when we are walking and be able to push a stroller with one hand/keep moving. This gives me all the hand free capabilities I miss from wearing my Airpods. Also, these glasses are so cute. While I tend to use them for walking and being more on the move, they are adorable dressed up with a cute outfit for happy hour! Very impressed with these glasses and would highly recommend!

Bought a pair for my daughter and me on Prime Day. Wife has the Meta glasses and loves them. Thought it would be cool to have hands free Alexa and audio streaming. And it is. It works well. But, the charger is so absolute trash. It fails 95%? of the time. And I followed the guides and everything. And since I have two pairs, somehow swapping which charger is being used magically fixes the problem. The Meta glasses charge wirelessly via a case for the glasses. That works 100% of the time. These just give "CHARGING ERROR" with no real explanation as to what that means. As a result of not being able to conveniently charge, they're just a novelty that might be used occasionally if I plan a day ahead as opposed to something that I could use every day.

I really like the style and look of these sunglasses. Quality seems excellent. Speaker sound is very good. I didn’t have a hard time with the charging stand although you do need to be careful setting the glasses on top and checking the proper connection was made. One star deduction because the sunglasses seem to easily slip off my nose. Not a problem I have with other quality sunglasses.

Glasses feel like they have been previously returned, as the temple frames are loose and worn out and the cleaning cloth is dirty and has pieces of debris on it. The charger doesn’t even charge correctly and is the worst design ever, it is also too bulky for traveling and any single touch to it—the red error light will start flashing. I’ve had Echo Glasses of the previous generations and my favorite was the 1st Gen. It was obviously put together with so much care. This Gen is terrible.