Last year, I reviewed Even Realities' G1 and came away deeply impressed by what I saw. In fact, I'd say they're the smart glasses to beat. I was surprised, then, to see my colleague Sam Rutherford have issues with the second-generation unit when he tested an early beta version. After all, it's not often a hardware platform goes backwards, especially once it's established a solid series of fundamentals. But it seems that, in trying to broaden the usability of its glasses, Even Realities has regressed.

Even Realities makes smart glasses without a forward-facing camera that act as an alternative to a smartwatch. A pair of waveguide prisms in the lenses project data into your field of vision, including notifications, news headlines and turn-by-turn directions. You can also use them for real-time translation, as a teleprompter or, inevitably, as a way to speak to AI. The base model is $599 in both Panto and Rectangle styles, and a choice of grey, brown or green colorways. If you need prescription lenses, you'll need to pay at least $159, although if your prescription is stronger, that figure can climb as high as $349.

Plenty has changed since the first generation. The G2s are a little lighter, and the waveguide prisms are a little taller, with a commensurate boost in resolution (640 x 350, up from 640 x 200). 5 degrees, up from 25), a far faster refresh rate (60Hz, up from 20Hz) and a higher peak brightness (1,200 nits, up from 1,000 nits).

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