Solos has always been the audio guy in the room. No cameras, just sound. Tuesday changes that slightly.
The company announced two new models. The AirGo A6 stays true to the roots. Audio only. The other? The AirGo V2. It’s a camera.
$299. The exact same price tag Meta slapped on its latest smart glasses last week. The goal wasn’t subtle. Solos wanted to “outshine” the blue social network. And honestly, the specs check out. Video capture, photo mode, music playback. There’s even an AI assistant that can see what you are looking at. You can slot in prescription lenses, too. Battery lasts ten to twelve hours. Standard fare, really.
Here is the twist though.
You don’t have to carry the eyes forever. Solos is selling a Privacy Kit. $79. It’s a set of clip-ons. One is a physical shield that covers the lens. The camera can’t see through plastic, so your recording stops. You are back to being a regular person wearing regular-looking glasses with audio capabilities. There is also a polarized clip-on in the mix.
Privacy isn’t just software anymore, it’s hardware you have to manage.
Is this actually effective? That is debatable.
Buying a separate accessory to fix a privacy concern feels clunky. It adds steps. Who really wants to dig a plastic clip out of their pocket every time they walk into a theater? Or a private meeting? It invites human error. Forget it. Don’t care. Also, the shield isn’t permanent. Nothing stops a malicious user from popping the clip off mid-interaction once they have passed a velvet rope or entered a no-camera zone. The lock is on your face, but it’s easily disarmed.
We’ve been burned by Solos cameras before.
Remember the original Solos AirGo Vision? Launched in 2024. We didn’t rate it highly. WIRED put it in the “Don’t Bother” pile. The design was okay. The touch controls were a headache. The media quality was… there. But the app? It drank power and demanded permissions it had no right asking for. It was messy.
Meta set the bar for consumer smart glasses, high or not, Solos had to jump it.
The market is crowding. Google and Samsung are teaming up on Android XR, with new hardware from Warby Parker and GentleMonster coming this year. Apple is rumored to be building its own version. Even smaller players like Even Realities are doubling down on camera-free designs. They see the creep factor. They want to avoid the “pervert glasses” label.
Solos is trying to have its cake and eat it too. The privacy pivot comes after Meta faced heavy heat for silently adding face-recognition code to their devices, then pulling it after an outcry. Meta’s trust capital is low. They also announced last week they are going to start charging subscription fees for features that were free before. Not great timing for a hardware push.
But Meta’s leadership sees the opportunity in the quiet headspace. CTO Andrew Bosworth admitted there is demand for audio-only devices. He said it himself: “Market demand for that product for sure.”
Yet Meta keeps the camera prominent. For now.
Until the king builds a blind pair, Solos hopes to carve out a niche. A niche with a $79 clip-on.
