iFixit teardown reveals Meta Ray-Ban glasses are unrepairable

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In the latest episode of iFixit’s gadget teardown, the experts have cracked open Meta’s $800 Ray-Ban Display glasses, quite literally. 

They discovered that what makes them special isn’t their smart tech, but their glass. 

According to iFixit, the real magic lies in the lenses, which use a reflective geometric waveguide system to beam images directly into your eyes while keeping your screen secrets safe from curious onlookers. 

Think of it like a high-tech mirror maze, but one that fits in your sunglasses.

The lenses work hand-in-hand with a micro-projector tucked into the right temple. 

This tiny contraption, called an LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon) display, bounces light from three LEDs to create a crisp 600×600-pixel image. 

Instead of the older “diffractive” light-bending tech used in other AR glasses, which often made users look like their eyes were glowing or like they were starring in a low-budget sci-fi movie, Meta’s approach produces cleaner visuals without the rainbow sparkles.

But that innovation doesn’t come cheap. iFixit suspects the custom glass alone could be so pricey that Meta might actually be losing money on each pair. 

So, while the tech might make you look cool, your wallet and Meta’s bottom line probably won’t feel the same way.

The teardown itself was, well, brutal. iFixit’s Shahram Mokhtari had to literally saw the arms and frame apart to get inside. 

Once open, it became painfully clear that Meta didn’t intend for anyone to ever put these back together, let alone swap a battery or fix a broken hinge. 

Mokhtari summed it up best: “Any repairs here are going to need specialized skills and specialized tools.” If something breaks, you’re buying a new pair.

So yes, Meta’s Ray-Ban Display glasses are a sleek piece of tech artistry, but when it comes to repairability, they’re as fragile as the illusions they project.