Meta has begun rolling out a major software update for its Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta AI glasses. The headline feature is Live Translation, which now supports Japanese, letting the glasses translate what the person in front of you is saying and play it back as audio. The update also brings slow-motion and hyperlapse capture modes, along with Conversation Focus, which makes it easier to hear the voice in front of you in noisy surroundings. The update arrives gradually through the paired Meta AI app.
Live Translation Finally Works in Japanese
Live Translation was previously limited to a handful of languages such as English and Spanish. This update adds 14 new languages, including Japanese, bringing the total to 20. Alongside Japanese, the list covers English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), and Korean.
The mechanism is straightforward: the microphone built into the glasses picks up the other person's speech, and the built-in speaker plays back the translated audio. Unlike a translation app that requires you to look down at a phone screen, the glasses let you keep your eyes up and stay focused on the conversation. That hands-free, eyes-up experience is the real strength of a glasses-based device, and it should prove useful in everyday situations such as chatting with overseas visitors or handling simple exchanges with someone who does not speak Japanese.
Slow-Motion and Hyperlapse Capture
Video capabilities have been strengthened as well. Using the 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera and 3K Ultra HD recording built into Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 2) and Oakley Meta, two new modes are now available: slow motion and hyperlapse.
Slow motion is suited to capturing fleeting moments that normal-speed footage would miss, such as a burst of movement in sports or a child's expression. Hyperlapse, on the other hand, is a fast-forward mode that condenses long stretches of time into a few seconds, pairing well with street walks and scenery. Both can be shot from a first-person perspective with your hands free, so you can record without worrying about framing even during activities that keep both hands occupied.
Conversation Focus Helps in Noisy Places
The new Conversation Focus feature emphasizes the voice of the person in front of you to make it easier to hear. It combines the open-ear speakers with beamforming technology that picks up sound from a specific direction, plus real-time spatial processing.
In noisy environments such as restaurants, offices, or crowds, a companion's voice tends to get buried in the surrounding sound. Conversation Focus lifts that voice to the foreground and supports face-to-face exchanges. Combined with translation, it should make foreign-language conversations in loud settings easier to hold.
Sales Network Expands in Japan
Alongside the software improvements, the retail picture is also taking shape. From July 22, Ray-Ban Meta will be carried at select stores of Meta's authorized retail partners, including Yodobashi Camera, Bic Camera, and SoftBank. Only some models are covered.
Pre-sales are already under way through each company's online store, as well as at the Bic Camera Yurakucho and Namba stores and the Yodobashi Camera Akiba and Umeda stores. As in-store availability widens, shoppers will be able to check the fit and how the lenses look — the kinds of details that are hard to judge without trying a pair on — before making a decision.
Summary
This update delivers Japanese Live Translation support at its core, along with practical features such as slow-motion and hyperlapse capture and Conversation Focus, all arriving in Japan at once. The key question is how far the hands-free, eyes-up convenience unique to glasses can take root in daily life. With in-store availability expanding from July 22, anyone considering AI glasses will also have more chances to try the real thing.
