The arrival of lightweight, high-resolution monitors has led to a high volume of ‘AR’ glasses designed to give users a big-screen experience without, well, the big screen.
We’ve already sampled the likes of the Viture XR glasses and Viture Beast XR glasses, with the latter costing more than a Switch 2 console. At the lower end of the scale, you’ll find the RayNeo Air 4 Pro, a pair of AR glasses which do the same job but are less likely to break the bank.
Boasting dual 1080p screens with 120Hz refresh rates as well as four (count ’em) Bang & Olufsen speakers embedded in the arms, the RayNeo Air 4 Pro look like a pair of oversized sunglasses until you put them on – at which point your view is filled by what appears to be a large-format screen, but, in reality, is two displays being reflected off panels.
You connect the glasses via a USB-C cable and can use them with any device that supports video over USB-C. For the purpose of this hands-on feature, however, I’m looking to test the suitability of these glasses when it comes to Switch 2 gaming – and, like the aforementioned Viture Beast XR glasses, there’s a special dock you have to purchase to unlock this aspect.
The RayNeo JoyDock is sleeker and more attractive than the dock sold alongside the Viture Beast XR glasses, but there’s a catch – the included attachment I got only works on the original Switch and not the Switch 2, so I had to simply connect the JoyDock to my console and leave both of them lying flat on the sofa next to me. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it’s certainly less convenient than the Viture Beast XR offering (RayNeo does offer a Switch 2 bracket, but I wasn’t able to test it).
While the picture quality is excellent, I also missed the deep customisation available with the Viture Beast XR glasses. With the RayNeo Air 4 Pro, the image is fixed, whereas with the Viture Beast XR glasses, you can choose between a ‘floating’ display and a fixed one.
I also found that the field of vision is more limited with the RayNeo glasses (47 degrees compared to 58 degrees on the Viture glasses) and the audio is slightly weaker (although the bundled ‘Air Tunnel’ silicone attachments allow you to direct the audio directly into your ear holes, which improves things – even if it’s a little bit fiddly).
I also couldn’t really make out much of a difference with the HDR10 setting enabled, a feature which the Switch 2 naturally supports. Having said that, even without HDR turned on, the image is bright and punchy. Given that these glasses cost about half as much as the Viture ones, it’s pretty impressive. The image is sharp and detailed, too, making Switch 2 games look fantastic.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the one ace the RayNeo Air 4 Pro has when compared to its rivals – it allows you to ‘be’ Batman.
You see, RayNeo is selling these glasses in special ‘Justice’ and ‘Chaos’ SKUs for a little extra cash. These come in special Batman-themed packaging and even have the logo on the arms, but the real selling point is the plastic eye shade that ships with the glasses. There’s a Batman and Joker option, and even a stand in the box for displaying them when they’re not affixed to the glasses.
If I’m honest, once the novelty value has vanished, I’m not sure I would use the RayNeo Air 4 Pro glasses with the Batman mask attached – but I can certainly see why it would appeal to some users.
Just as I said about the Viture Beast XR Glasses, there’s a solid use case scenario for this kind of product; I don’t always have access to a big-screen TV, and the RayNeo Air 4 Pro glasses offer that in any environment. They’re not as impressive or feature-rich as Viture’s offering, but they cost around half the price – and that could make them a far more attractive prospect for many buyers.
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Thanks to RayNeo for supplying the RayNeo Air 4 Pro glasses used in this hands-on.