Review: XREAL Air Glasses for Gaming and Video 

Fun Fact: When using with the Steam Deck, the screen turns off, and the two screens in the glasses likely use LESS energy than the Deck uses to power its own screen; you might get longer playtime with the glasses than if you weren't using them at all! :D

FYI: If you're using the Nreal adapter, you can adjust the volume on the glasses by using the brightness buttons. Press and hold the power button to switch between brightness and volume.

I have found the best method for me is using an android phone like a Galaxy S20, connected to Switch Joycons. You can tuck the phone in your front geek pocket and play Moonlight/Steam Link/any controller supported game discreetly (barring big honkin' glasses with a cable coming out, but a hoodie takes care of aesthetics, and you can tuck your hands in the hoodie to hide the controllers) Game in ultra mode while waiting in line for anything, without distracting others.

I don't play the Steam Deck these days without those glasses and my work commute wouldn't be the same. I use an old Samsung Galaxy s20 and load them with videos. Game changers for me. I have a cruise in two weeks and I'm definitely taking them with me.

Portability and overall function, these look amazing. I wasn't expecting this kind of tech on the regular market for a few more years, but the future is now, I guess. I'm really looking forward to the v2 of these with the minor tweaks and improvements to make them more comfortable and look better.

Just got these the other day, and I'm having a blast! These glasses are easily best used with a compatible samsung phone. samsung dex let's you have the desktop experience with your phone being the mouse and your apps being programs. Sooo, I made the desktop background transparent to give a true AR experience! With that change, here are a few more real world uses: Walking directions - the windows in samsung dex are moveable/resizeable, so you can put that window in the corner of the screen, and boom, AR walking directions(driving too, but that might just get you hurt...) For extra fun, Google maps has a new feature called 'live view' that let's you use your phones camera to make a HUD experience with huge navigation arrows overlayed on real world like playing need for speed! You put your phone in a front shirt pocket or on your bikes handle bars, and you're living in the future. Real-time language translator - Google translate lets you use an auto translator that will playback the translation like subtitles in a foreign film in real time! Put that window somewhere on screen(AR) and you have a way of casually understanding at least 20 languages. Since the glasses have speakers, turn them up, speak, and have your words played back out loud in whatever language you choose without having to look away. Picture-in-picture(kinda) - not for AR purposes, but still cool. while using ps remote play or steam link, go ahead and open up any other streaming apps, size one small, and pin it to the top of the screen. Boom, picture in picture! The opacity of the pinned window can also be adjusted. Now you can still watch the game and play video games without turning the TV on. I'll find more uses, but these 3 are pretty kick ass. I don't work for nreal, just a nerd for new tech!😁

Happy late birthday and great video as always man! I appreciate how honest and in-depth your reviews are. It really does give the viewers a thorough understandin of it.

I don't even know what these are but I always look forward to your thorough and in depth reviews. Cheers lad

Cheers Russ, nice to be kept in the loop with this tech.

Very good and detailed video review. Thank you! My glasses is on the way :)

thank you!! i can’t stand people saying it’s like a 150 ft screen, it’s so misleading. i tell people it’s like being 5-7 feet from a 1080p 75 inch tv.

Russ - awesome job! I use the Odin Base with the glasses. The Odin has the video over USB, shuts off the screen, has a microSD to store offline videos, a headphone jack to handle the audio. I ended up with the same conclusion - only video viewing and not gaming.

Thanks for being brave enough to review a product that's near impossible to review lol. The challenge with these products is that they're creating an experience that doesn't translate to review media, and so consumers have to basically imagine what the reviewer is talking about, other than the form, fit, connectivity of the device. I like the blackout "sunglasses" and integrated speakers. Hopefully this gets integration with look around inputs for FPS, like how original Quake had the ability to look around independent of movement - it would be great if they could do independent 6DoF head tracking for the camera, but it must not affect aim to the extent that it does in original Quake. I also hope that they produce these with a broad spectrum of diopter and PD adjustments, because the lack really kneecaps a lot of the other AR/3D glasses products.

hearing this channel's intro just makes me think of soming home after a long holiday. like I've come home.

Even though it takes some tweaking for the Nreals to work reliably (including a splitter/HDMI adapter out to charge while playing) i love these things. Its a personal movie theatre for me.

Thanks for the honest review. You trully are an unicorn amongs tech reviewers.

Regarding the audio review of the device: For such a niche product, they should have looked at bone conduction for audio tbh. The glasses are already pressing into the sides of your head so I think that already helps conductivity too

I love your reviews and I was hoping you did get to review this before doing an impulse buy. Definitely will think of this on my next long trip but I don't see much use in my home since I'm saving for a 80 inch 4k tv

You know who should invest in this? Airline companies. Specifically, the long flights If they bought a shit ton of these, and made people rent em or give em in the higher tiers, I think it'd be really popular (they'd have to get those who use them agree to have some earphones when using it tho)

Great video. I was actually looking into these glasses a few months ago but before buying I like to watch reviews with different use cases. If we could use them for a 3DS style stereoscopic 3D including 2D games (think of Sega 3D Classics Collection or Shantae on the 3DS), this would be awesome! Btw, they still remind me of the Elsa 3D Revelator glasses.

NReal air +, Samsung Dex +Retroarch + 8 bit duo controller is awesome combo.

@RetroGameCorps Great review video bro thanks I just wanted to let you know I’ve had my Nreal air AR glasses for a few months now and I love mine I use them on my Odin pro my rog phone 3 two iPhones a x and a SE 3rd gen and my laptop and my steam deck but hate I can’t charge my steam deck while playing with the glasses but still there’s something very cool I figured out about them that most/no one I’ve seen has said about it but I hope it helps you guys that have them 🤘🏼 there is a rocker button on the right side that changes the brightness up and down and also a button in front of them that turns the screens display off/on but what I’ve learned is if you hold the display on/off button for three seconds it changes the brightness buttons into volume buttons the just hold the display on/off button to change them back to brightness control I have watched a lot of videos on these glasses before and after I’ve got them but no one tells you they can do this so I hope you can share with your viewers thanks again🙌🏼🤘🏼💯

I bought a pair of these to take when i travel and use as a second monitor. It's way easier than taking an actual portable monitor. As a bonus it works with my Win 3 and Win Max 2 and makes for a great experience to play while laying in a hotel bed. It's a fantastic gaming setup and i haven't found any issues with the music. I've only played games with no spoken dialog, however, but the Tunic soundtrack came through super clear and so did Rogue Legacy 2. Those are just the most recent that I've used it with. I'll try something with dialog next time i use them. But i still recommend them if you have to fly often, they make great in-flight media consumption devices

These are awesome... I played Manhunt 2 in the backseat on a vacation using the ppsspp app in 3d mode in my Oculus Quest 2 and it was one of the best gaming experiences I've had. Now I have a simple way to do that.

Great review thank you.

Your comprehensive walkthrough made me hestitate to jump on these glasses. I would love to play my home console without having to steal the tv, and with my space I could totally do that with PS5, Xbox Series S, PC, and Switch but the extra hoops to jump through to make it work...I am just not sold yet on them. Who knows maybe there's a developer out there producing glasses that can use wifi to send the signal like PCVR Airplay on Quest 2. Here is to the future.

BEST DETAIL REVIEW EVER!!! OVER ALL

Ooh, suggesting that the dark lenses be polarized is an amazing idea!! They know the polorization of the display, so it would cancel out the image.

The nreal adapter can be connected to the Genki covert dock (if you have one, I do). Setup would be this...sit by a wall outlet (all throughout my house and close to everywhere I sit. Bed, recliner, patio, etc) and plug in covert dock -> short usbc to usbc cable from covert dock to Switch -> 1ft HDMI to HDMI cable plugged into covert dock and nreal adapter -> plug glasses into nreal adapter. 2 very short cables, adapter, dock, Switch, glasses...done, no cables across the floor. Although I already have the Apple adapter, from years of using iOS devices. I would watch on my iPad 6 mini or iPad Pro because it is usbc. But the iPhone is smaller so it depends where I am and the case that I would use it over the iPads. My recliners have usbc ports in the arms so I could connect it in the way you did so I could use power through the lightning adapter from recliner. Come on Apple, put usbc on the iPhones like the iPads. Edit: got to the peakdo presentation you did. Nice but I will stick with my covert dock idea. Especially since I carry the covert dock as my power brick for my Switch anyway.

Man wish it had bone conducting speakers on this one. It would have helped a lot with the volume for the user and also would make it quieter for everyone else.

These glasses are great. Love them when using my steam deck.

I have a pair nreal air. They are great! The new rokid max also look pretty good.

New camera position is great!

Always the best, thank you 👊🏻👽

I use my Nreals most days and don't have the same audio problems you described. For others who may be concerned about this issue, I often put my 5 and 2 year old to be while wearing them to watch the end of NBA games. I haven't disturbed them or had issues with clarity and am often impressed when I take them off and they are so much quieter that I perceive them when they are on

I had these for a time. They were great; I used them with my Steam Deck and my Samsung Galaxy Fold 4. They were brilliant with Samsung DEX. I didn't use the Nreal software very much, I mainly used the HDMI input. However, like VR headsets, they began making me nauseous after about an hour of use. I already have a Quest 2 headset and whilst the Nreal were more versatile in what I could connect them too and had a better image quality, I ended up keeping the Quest because I would have the option of VR. Ideally I would have kept both, but I couldn't justify it.

can't wait to see where this market goes. very interesting

Good review one quick comment during the comparison section you kept saying 'this one' and then 'on the other one' which was confusing if you're not 100% paying attention to the video, just listening or glancing at the screen. Plus they look pretty similar! For future comparisons I would ensure you keep using the name of the product. Cheers!

5 months later and I am/was (maybe?) considering these for my current setup. As it is I don't have a lot of space in a new location and these would work around that. While I do have a Steam Deck I was mostly thinking of using these on my PC because of the limited space I have, but I would also need the adaptor. As you said, it would work best with the Steam Deck, but the cable issue mentioned with the Switch wouldn't be a problem for me, and if I use it with my PC then I'll already have the adaptor in that scenario. This review has given me a lot to think about. The main reason I was thinking of getting it, is almost pointless but with my Steam Deck, it would make the most sense. I'm suddenly reminded of the R-Zone gaming devices from the 90's just thinking about taking the Steam Deck and these out in pubic LOL. I may just wait and see, but I do know if I do get them, it will be for the sake of using my Steam Deck and not just for the gaming aspect.

TIL Russ has the same AirPods case as me and it made my day!

Love the VR content ✨

My previous comment was deleted, so let me keep it short. The PeakDo wireless adapter is life changing with the nreals!

I just bought a pair last week while in Japan (shout out Yodobashi Camera Aki). I love them and think they are a really fun TOY. By TOY I mean they are for fun and like Russ said in the video for very specific things like media consumption if you have a USBc device and yada yada which i do. BUT I also bought them in Japan. They were 46,000 yen. This 345 USD but we also get tax free wich is 10% off. So in the end I got them for around 300 and at that price I thought they were justified for something fun to play with.

Great review bruh.

I still have my original Oculus Go which is great for what looks like a similar experience for movies and RU-vid etc (if you just want it for video basically), and a lot cheaper these days second hand etc

iPhone users, you might be better off just getting a cheap android phone to travel with. The experience of walking around with the iPhone dongle is not fun. I’ve really enjoyed using this with the Steam Deck and Samsung S10+ during travel. I don’t use them much at home, but they are great if you fly a lot.

That's exactly what i wanted to hear

I am pre ordering Rokid Max wish me luck the screen is going to be so much bigger you will want this as your TV just don't replace it because you will need to have an Air Casting TV for the wireless display if you want video games.

Great video 👍🏼 I wanted to ask are you getting another handheld PC ?

I feel like AR glasses would work really great for my use case, but at that price, I feel like I'd rather just continue saving and get a VR headset, because I don't see myself using it outside the home much anyway. Really interested to the prices come down on this technology.

thanks for being honest

Appreciate it mang

I have the XREAL AIR 2 Pro combo pack on order. It will ship at the end of November 2023, about three weeks away. However I am checking in with Amazon daily…if I see it available before then, I’ll simply cancel the first order and go with the one from Amazon IF it will ship more quickly. The pro version has that electric optical dimming feature where the actual glass will switch between three levels of darkness from what I’ve seen. I want that feature because it’s just a bit less weird looking if I use it in public (e.g. on a plane, train etc.). My use cases are two. The first is to plug it into my laptop and pull up a three screen windows desktop which will support my daily PC based workflows. The second use case is to pull up the 330 inch screen and run DCS (a very realistic aircraft simulator), also using a small head tracking unit also attached to the laptop. I should be able to fly an F14, F15, F22 etc. and be able to look up, down at my instruments, side to side and even look back through the canopy on both rear facing sides of the airplane while flying. If that use case alone prevails it will be absolutely worth it. And most likely, breathtaking in terms of realism. Fingers crossed for the best, and willing to return it if the unit just doesn’t measure up to what I need from either use case.

How the heck did they think it was a good idea not to include a separate USB C port to power that adapter? For that price it's silly to only have battery power.

You should check out the Viture One XR Glasses to do a review and comparison between the two.

I had these a while back and was using the Samsung dex+gamepass combo . But I may get the rokid max for the 600 nits and 120hz for my ayaneo geek .

So in your opinion which XR glasses do you prefer? The TCL or the Xreal? And do you think 3d printing a blackout cover for the TCL would help with the image quality?

PeakDo wireless HDMI is pretty easy to setup. Ideally, you don't want to plug it directly into the back of your console. Best configuration is to run an HDMI cable from the console to the PeakDo transmitter and also use an articulating HDMI dongle+coupler. This gives you the flexibility to place the transmitter in the best position to face the receiver. For receiver placement, tripods are clunky and take up too much space. Ideally, you want the receiver close to your recliner or whereever you are sitting. Depending on your setup, you can get a SmallRig or even goPro mount with Shredlights action clip. The transmitter has the proper mounting hole for these. If you've updated your Airs and PeakDo, you should be able to just plug straight into USBCDP out on the PeakDo transmitter and not have to use the Xreal HDMI adapter.

A little time should have been spent on Dex mode and using it as a portable mini laptop with you Samsung phone. Or even with your steam deck in desktop mode. That’s huge for business travelers and those at universities in lecture halls. There’s also a new 3D mode which is gimmicky but cool

I think I'd love to have all these things, even if the combined effort is still something to work with.

I think the best use case would be for those who are looking for a large picture but don't have the space for it. Think someone renting a small room in a flatshare. I'm considering it for sim racing in a small room.

Gotta love this down to earth no BS point of view.

Best review

Thanks for the great review. One piece of constructive criticism: when you compared the two different glasses, you said “the other ones” a lot and that’s a little hard to track. It would’ve been nice if you referred to them by name instead (eg, “the Nreals”).

3D PC Games using VORPX or other 3D solutions and a 3rd party adapter are amazing. Been enjoying Rocket League, Cyberpunk and Arkham City in 3D…. Note 3rd party adapters to date do not send audio to glasses.

I'm waiting for Rokid Max Pro. Supposedly will have Hand Tracking. If it's close to the same form factor as Rokid Max I think it will be WORTH it.

Wondering how these compare to the Viture. Maybe a shootout of the 4 top models across companies.

Great review! - What's their latency?

I returned mine only because I hated that I needed to get prescription lenses and trying it on with my own glasses it got a little too heavy on my ear and fatigued. There is another brand (forget the name) that uses a dial where you don't need prescription lenses. It is a great glasses if eyes allow it and without prescription though.

The AR mode is gimmicky, but super cool none the less. That would have been a compelling re-imagination of google cardboard that I think would have really caught on. It might yet have a future in light duty enterprise XR.

Decided to buy an Nreal air. But didn't want to pay the full price, bc my phone was not supported snd was going to use for steam deck and pc with hdmi port I bought instead of nreal hdmi only would last 4hrs of game play. Still a great price that I payed for adapter and hdmi port came out to around 230. Just sucks hdmi doesn't work with xbox series x or google tv devices, but mostly use pc or steam deck lately

Can you try the Viture glasses next? The blue ones ❤

Maybe the only honest review of this product.

Now you have to try the new Rokid max and compare them to the Nreal air

I haven't watched the video yet, but in case you haven't realized it yet, your mini classics or anything 720p or lower will work with nreal if you have the mclassic adapter.

Speaking of phones, when you review a hand held, could you put it next to a phone for size comparison??

So it's best (for now, at least) for movie watching & gaming with resting hands, but still lays down a sort of groundwork for movie & XR (VR, AR, & other kinds) glasses?

But if you are an avid Steam Deck user but have to limit play due to neck issues then having an nreal air should help with posture and allow for longer play time.

Please don't waste money for that official USB-C to HDMI adapter. You can get a USB-C to HDMI cable for $10-$15. I think that I paid a 2 meters one maybe $20 but I think that it was cheaper.

Why manufacturer don't add bone conduction audio support? It looks like a perfect solution for me. 🤔

When you say it’s like having a massive screen up close to your eyes, do you get any eye strain at all?

If I have Myopia can I use this without my prescription glasses as the screen is just inches from my eyes? Are the prescription inserts just for Presbyopia?

Looking good, Russ 😅

Really good I love mine but I want a battery built in

I think you should keep the cover on it the whole time and put googly eyes on them

Damnit... have a steam deck, an ipad and an urge to play steam deck/watch youtube laying in bed on my back, must fight the laziness!

You should review the Rokid Max Ar glass next

When you where on the bed... I definitely laughed. I wouldn't but these for that use case.

If the bose audio sunglass team made a fusion with these, they'd be amazing

I as deaf person already got this. I am fking happy. I don't need to wait for better audio, lol

You can resolve the bright LEDs on the adapter by sticking a Light Dim sticker on it. I've been buying them for years to dim distracting LEDs.

I made the mistake of jumping to purchase another brand of AR glasses and of course had buyers remorse..lol.. but... many of your comments have great cautionary points. I really detest the lack of not being able to just cut off the glasses audio and use ear buds, or Blue tooth buds. The very fact that each of the manufacturers seem to continue to refuse to change will eventually have all the existing AR glasses with no audio cut off BANNED in many public places. Airlines....waiting rooms about anywhere...especially in hospitals and doctors offices. Public transportation.. bus and subway cars and waiting areas. Just watch... it will happen.. just recall what happened with the boom box craze.. Another commenter did lay into the manufacturers about not warning people about the new USB mini C plug ....that these glasses require with only the more exotic really expensive phones that are equipped with the new circuitry .My old Samsung Android has the mini C but not the circuitry.. So, I was forced to use a special converter plug for HDMI to convert my lap top HDMI with extra power cable...( and the HDMI have a break out for audio to use to power up my ear buds or Blue tooth buds. So, with all those extras you mentioned to add to price, check the compatibility of your phone with rest of your setup. Side note... one groggy old person (83) nite, perfectly sober, I grabbed a USB cable with a small C end and with a standard large USB plug on the other end. I was going to transfer pics from phone to Computer... I had the small C in my hand in the darkened room, and tried to put it into the large USB port. Sparks flew..and knocked out computer. Fortunately, Since I had personally built it myself several years back...I had to replace several parts...but not the mother board... So, just pay attention to what end of the cord you are going to plug in. (wink...true story)

Can these be connected directly to a Blu-ray player? Would love to know if they then work correctly with stereoscopic 3d movies.

So it's more or less a huge external monitor that takes up space of a soda can? I wonder if the Backbone One USB C passthrough would work. Seems like I'd be good for gaming.

Can I watch streams like ESPN, Netflix and RU-vid TV via my iPad with good results?

Lots of people are probably thinking of its best use but not saying it 😂

Does anyone know if you can use Bluetooth headphones or earbuds with the device? Maybe russ mentions it but I didn’t hear it.

Fun fact, iPhone thunderbolt fits both ways, so you can literally plug in the adapter the other way so when your phone is laying down face up the lights on the adapter are face down. Problem solved. Also, you can just use a magsafe charger to charge your phone, so you don't need to use the hdmi cable to allow you to access the power source on the adapter.

You’re not the only one complaining about blurry text. Cas & Chary did a comparison to Rokid Max, and the Rokid had sharper text.

They should have an earbud on each arm to use for audio! Connected via a really short wire so its not going to get lost or need charge of it's own