Xreal’s new AR glasses are more affordable and more accurate

I love it when a company pushes itself to make a cheaper version of a beloved product. Xreal’s $299 A01 Plus is a stripped-down version of its $449 1S that’s lighter on features but with the 1S’s best features. These AR glasses are comfortable, look great, and the displays are surprisingly bright and heavy for the price.

The new glass is very light at 62 grams – more than 20 grams lighter than the 1S. It’s as light as I’d like for any brand, but the frame feels light in comparison. Its stability became questionable when I moved the A01 Plus’s temple arms to be in the center of the screen. It needs a little touch, so as not to overload the frame that contains its small OLED panels and the bird’s-eye view, or to bring out the shell of its glasses.

As for the shells, customization is the A01 Plus’s biggest selling point. The Xreal includes a shell that houses the optical glass on the other side of its display, and is interchangeable with other coatings, even 3D printed ones in the future. Removing them requires gently pulling on the edges near where the temple arms are attached, which can be dangerous to do until you get the hang of it. The company provided another cover that supports the A01 Plus’s bright lights and keeps the lights on.

The new AR glasses don’t have the electrochromic lens technology with adjustable focus, which is standard on most models, but I don’t mind what’s left out here. The A01 Plus has a light film that covers the back of their optics that can pass through to prevent light from interfering with the scene. One of the removable covers attached to the lighting unit is better at blocking light than the pricier 1S. I held my phone’s flashlight up to the mirror where I was wearing it and I couldn’t see it.

As is every AR lens I testedI played a lot of games from my Steam Deck on the A01 Plus. First impressions with these glasses were mixed. 1080p resolution, brightness, 120Hz refresh rate, and contrast were fine, but the display looked dull. However, Xreal provided HonsVR prescription glasses which helped with the clarity. The glasses have an IPD range of 54.5mm to 74.5mm, but I can’t guarantee you’ll have a better experience than I did out of the box unless you buy the glass inserts, which will cost around $50.

One of my complaints about the A01 Plus comes from the wear and tear of using the $449 1S. The main omission here is the three degrees of freedom, the feature that allows you to close your window. Xreal aims to bridge the gap between zero and three degrees of freedom with a fixed object that acts as a gimbal. It does a good job of reducing unwanted movement on the screen (a little movement instead of a lot), but it introduces jitter that’s easy to see with audio. Also, the sound quality is good on the A01 Plus, but it doesn’t sound as loud as the 1S, and lacks the low and midrange.

I understand cutting three degrees of freedom is good quality to get to a lower price, but some omissions don’t make sense. The A01 Plus has almost the same buttons as the other Xreal models, but currently there is no way to change the number of lenses. You should go to the audio source instead. Also, the screen can display content on one color – the equivalent of 147 inches and a 50-degree angle that I can’t see the limits of – and you can’t make it as big or as small as other glasses allow. It’s surprising that this feature seems so important to be included in the A01 Plus.

Despite their shortcomings, the A01 Plus glasses are what some people will be after: affordable USB-C AR glasses for their gaming, video, or all-in-one computer screens. It’s light on features, but it nails the basics, with a bright display, clear sound, and a comfortable, lightweight design. I am impressed with everything that is included in the price.

What you get for spending $150 more on the 1S may be worth it to some, but in general the A01 Plus is good for first-time buyers who don’t want to spend $300 (just make sure the $50 you’ll need to spend on the supplied lenses is a prescription).

Photo by Cameron Faulkner/The Verge