Xreal (formerly Nreal) just announced the second generation of its popular smart glasses, the Xreal Air 2. The new model is even lighter and features brighter displays with higher density. The Xreal Air 2 is compatible with a wide variety of laptops, computers, phones, and gaming devices, providing a large virtual screen in a compact and easy-to-carry pair of glasses.
Like many similar smart glasses, the Xreal Air 2 are meant to replicate virtual screens right in your glasses without the need for multiple monitors.
Compared to the Xreal Air, the Air 2’s displays are 25% brighter, with better color fidelity. They should also be more comfortable and look more like normal glasses since Xreal managed to reduce the weight and thickness with the new design.
The detachable shades that dim ambient light look like regular sunglasses. A new Air 2 Pro model has adjustable electrochromic shades with three background dimming positions, including 99.9% black. There are black and red color options, plus Xreal’s Kaleido Kit offers a choice of six colorful skins to customize the appearance of your Air 2 smart glasses.
At just 72 grams (2.5oz), the Air 2 is 10% lighter than the original model. That might not seem like a big difference, but that weight rests mostly on your nose, with some on your ears, so every little bit helps. The earpieces now flex, which means they should fit more comfortably on various head shapes and sizes. Softer nose pads help relieve any pressure on your nose.
As a monitor and TV replacement, the Xreal Air 2’s screens need to be bright. They supply up to 500 nits of brightness, 25% more than the original Air glasses, while meeting TÜV Rheinland standards for limiting blue light and flickering to protect eye health. The refresh rate can go as high as 120Hz.
Using the latest Sony micro-OLED technology, color exceeds the SRGB color gamut with a display industry standard gamma of 2.2. The Xreal Air 2’s improved displays should look more like a large HD monitor, with proper contrast and color saturation.
Xreal says the view is equivalent to a 330-inch screen at six meters. That’s a subjective measurement, of course, since you might perceive the virtual screen as closer than someone else. A more accurate metric is the 46-degree field of view. A large HD screen fills your central view when plugged into a device that supports USB-C Alt mode.
Audio is reportedly enhanced to reduce sound leakage and improve spatial separation. Movies should sound better and become more immersive.
You can turn your head to see up to three virtual monitors near your laptop.
Like the Nreal Air, the Xreal Air 2 smart glasses work with Nebula, a virtual AR desktop app for the Mac and PC. With Nebula, you can turn your head to see up to three virtual monitors near your laptop. There’s also a Nebula app for Android phones, but it presents an ultrawide display that appears as you turn to either side.
Most of the smart glasses I’ve tested lack spatial awareness, so the virtual screen locks to the center of your view no matter where you look. That isn’t always bad, but it’s nice to have the option to turn away and interact with others.
In July, Xreal launched an accessory called Beam that makes its Air smart glasses compatible with a wider variety of devices and anchors one virtual screen in place. The Xreal Air 2 works with Beam and other adapters, so you can connect to most computers, phones, and handheld gaming consoles.
The Xreal Air 2 smart glasses are now available to preorder for $399 and should be on Amazon by November and should ship by mid-to-late November. Xreal will also offer an Air 2 Pro model that includes adjustable electrochromic shades and costs $449.
Google just dropped its latest AI model, Gemini 4 Carbon, designed to tackle complex coding jobs and cybersecurity threats. The company claims it can work through difficult engineering problems for days, finding hidden bugs and developing fixes across large codebases.
Gemini 4 Carbon also takes the top spot on Artificial Analysis' updated Intelligence Index, scoring 59 points, pushing out Claude Opus 5.5, OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra, and even its own predecessor Gemini 4 Argon.
Apple has just introduced a redesigned MacBook Pro with a few bells and whistles. The focus this time around is on a thinner and lighter build, and an upgrade to a touch-sensitive OLED screen without any ugly notch. And, in case you were wondering, there is definitely a price premium to pay for these niceties, which also include a glowing Apple logo at the back. What if you wanted to get the best that Apple has to offer? Well, the numbers are finally here.
For a mere $14,549, you can get yourself the fully kitted 16-inch MacBook Pro PROLED XDR with the beefiest laptop chip that Apple has to offer, and the best memory configuration in tow. For nearly $15,000, you treat yourself to the 16-inch version of the laptop with a nano-texture glass layer on the screen to reduce reflections and glare.
Apple has unveiled its first-ever touchscreen MacBook Pro. The company seems a bit confused about the naming, calling it the "MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display," which is tough to remember. If you look past that and review the full spec sheets, you might ask a genuine question: what are the differences between the touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions?
Given that Apple continues to sell both variants together, that's a genuine question. Luckily, you don't have to spend more time lining up the spec sheets side by side and hunting for differences hidden in the fine print. I took that bullet for you. Here's everything that's different between the PROLED XDR Display and the regular MacBook Pro.