Engadget has reviewed HTC's Vive Eagle, camera-equipped smart glasses now launching in the West after debuting in Taiwan a year ago, as the company attempts to compete with Meta's Ray-Ban line. The review argues HTC faces a steep challenge, as it lacks both Meta's ability to subsidise hardware and the cultural cachet of celebrity-backed marketing, meaning the Eagle needs to justify its existence and outperform rivals to succeed, something the reviewer suggests it fails to do.

The Vive Eagle follows a Wayfarer-style design with Panto or Square lens options, weighs around 49 grams, and costs $499 in the US for the basic model. It runs on a Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chip with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage, and includes a 12-megapixel camera capable of vertical video and slow-motion capture, stereo speakers, a four-microphone array, and Bluetooth 5.3 with Wi-Fi 6E. Its 235mAh battery lasts up to 4.5 hours of music playback or three hours of calls, with physical controls including two buttons and a touchpad for navigation.