Even Realities G2s are my new daily smartglasses; the R1 ring is clutch

I’ve really been on a smart glasses kick, but among the many I’ve tried out, the Even Realities’ Even G2 is among the best. These cameraless smart glasses keep privacy in mind and offer two displays on each lens. The Even G2 paired with the R1 smart ring makes for a pair that I really enjoy, as it keeps my interactions with the smart glasses very discreet. Though the pair aren’t without some faults, the Even G2 and R1 ring are honestly great.

One Ring

The Even G2s look stylish; you can barely tell there’s anything different about them. The temple tips by your ear are a bit thicker than usual, but that’s pretty much the only indicator they might be smart glasses. The glasses are slim and light, weighing only 36g; you’d forget they’re smart glasses if not for the displays. Seriously, I’ve had people be shocked to know I’m wearing smart glasses. And if these had cameras, maybe that’d be a problem, but they don’t, so no issue here.

I could see the Even R1 smart ring being too thick for some women. It’s a pretty thick ring, but I didn’t mind it at all. There’s a flat part of the ring with an ‘E,’ and my finger naturally gravitates towards it, playing with the ring all the time. The flat part doesn’t control the ring or anything, but indicates the correct placement of the ring on the charging stand and helps you dive into the R1 a little more. The smart ring is able to navigate your smart glasses with different gestures. Below the E on the ring, you’ll see dots indicating where you’re supposed to touch. The different gestures include a single tap, a double tap, and a double tap that you hold on the second tap, and you’ll swipe up and down.

Discreet

The screens on the lenses aren’t very evident; people can’t ever tell I’m reading my HUD. Well, until they realize I’m not making eye contact because I’m reading a lengthy text message — or a literal book. Often, people can’t even tell I’m wearing smart glasses; even other journalists and creators in tech who have used the glasses themselves take a moment or two to realize I’m wearing the G2 glasses. Even I don’t always clock when people are wearing the glasses; like in this picture of George Clooney at the Venice International Film Festival, it took me a moment to realize that the star was wearing the smart glasses.

The Even Realities G2 two panels can do a variety of things. Whenever I put on my smart glasses in the morning, I’m greeted by my dashboard that offers the time, date, and the battery percentage of the smart ring and glasses in the top left corner. The bottom left corner shows the temperature, sunset, and the forecast for the following day. The right side shows my calendar for the day, but by swiping on the ring or the temple tips, I can see upcoming tasks and my steps, calories, sleep score, heart rate (beats per minute), and my O2 — based on data provided by the smart ring. Of course, this is all customizable and based on what you want to see. Other widgets include the news, stocks and quick notes.

A double tap — one short, one long — opens a menu which shows notifications, conversate, teleprompter, translate, Even AI, photos and books. This menu can also be customized, and you can add a lot more plugins as well, including one for navigation, one to play chess, and even add the Bible. Books and Photos weren’t there by default either; I added them.

Conversate

While checking your notifications is always useful, my favourite feature is ‘Conversate.’ Conversate writes down all the words being said, kind of like subtitles. I always feel like I have difficulty hearing people around me, so giving everyone subtitles helps. And Conversate offers insight into what’s being said; for instance, the first time I used the feature, I had a family member in the hospital and while Conversate offered subtitles, when I asked my cousin why she needed her sodium up before surgery, a pop-up indicator appeared. To my surprise, the indicator explained why someone would need more sodium in their blood before surgery. It offers a lot of details, pretty much about anything anyone is talking about. I had someone sort of give me an astronomy lesson, and it was able to correct some of the information he was talking about — a single year on Venus is 29.5 Earth years, not 33 years — and even while at church, when the preacher said a bible scripture, the smart glasses showed the verses.

Other cool features include a teleprompter; I haven’t needed to use it yet, but I’ve tried it out, and I can see how it’s very helpful, especially if I’m saying lines in front of the camera. And I had my partner speak with me in Spanish, and I could understand clearly what he was saying. Even Realities’ Even AI can answer any and every question; you can even set it for continuous listening, so it can listen for follow-up questions. You can summon the AI with the phrase “Hey Even,” and it works in English and French, among other languages.

Some of the downsides

The Even Realities G2s aren’t perfect, though. Sometimes, I find the R1 ring a little finicky, and it takes a few swipes before it registers. I’ve had issues with the ring connecting a couple of times, but it’s not a constant problem. Randomly, I’ve seen “ring disconnected”; check it, and it’s already connected again.

This one is a me-thing, but even though the G2s are IP65 water-resistant, I’m always worried about the smart glasses getting wet in the rain or if I’m going to sweat too much and damage them. Another me-thing, but I needed to remind myself to silence my smart glasses before playing badminton because I got a shuttlecock to the forehead when I looked up, saw my dashboard and couldn’t see the birdie anymore.

And unfortunately, the price tag is a bit of a con. The Even Realities G2s are US$599 (C$846) and the R1 smart ring is US$249 (C$352), and this is before including your prescription lenses.