When I first saw Bose’s Bluetooth sunglasses a few years ago, I wondered who and what are those for? If I’m wearing sunglasses while walking down the street, listening to music, I’m blasting that shit until my eardrums hurt. I’m certainly not playing it out loud next to my ears.
However, when I was asked if I wanted to review GlassesUSA’s FILA x Revel Tune audio glasses, I had to see for myself if I could really be convinced to replace my headphones with glasses.
I tested out the prescription glasses and sunglasses, both of which I found to be very useful during a two-week road trip with a friend that consisted of lots of hiking and sharing small motel rooms and Airbnb beds.
Unboxing the FILA x Revel Tune Bluetooth glasses
The FILA x Revel Tune glasses come in two different styles, and I opted for the VFI502 prescription glasses and the SFI502 sunglasses (which look the same apart from the lenses). They each came in their own cases with a charger.
Credit: Miller Kern / Mashable
Turning the glasses on for the first time simply required connecting them to the charger and then removing them once they were juiced up — they turn on automatically when disconnected from their charger. Figuring out how to turn them on when I hadn’t charged them had a learning curve for me, but you do so by holding a finger down on either temple where the logo is. That proved easier said than done for me (but more on that later).
Connecting to Bluetooth was as easy as any other Bluetooth device. I just selected the glasses in my Bluetooth settings on my phone, and I was able to rename them so I could tell the difference between the prescription pair and sunglasses.
The glasses feature intuitive and responsive tap controls on the temples of each arm: play/pause music, skip songs, and answer/end calls. You can also tap to activate Siri and other voice assistants.
Audio sunglasses became my outdoor companion
The sunglasses were amazing for a hike through Yosemite toward the end of my road trip when my friend and I were talked out. I got to listen to my music while still being able to clearly hear her if she did break through the sound of us panting as we climbed 1,000 feet of rock stairs. I was also able to hear if others were passing by or said hello to us. All the while, I was the only person able to hear my music. My friend couldn’t hear a thing even though she was only a few feet away from me.
At the beach, I wore the sunglasses while my boyfriend read a book next to me. He could only hear my music if he really tried to listen for it. Otherwise, I got the best of both worlds: I heard my music instead of what everyone else at the beach decided to play on their speakers, but I could still hear the sound of the ocean waves crashing on the beach. And I didn’t have to pause my music to listen to my boyfriend when he started talking.
Credit: Miller Kern / Mashable
Even though the FILA x Revel Tune sunglasses are great, I still prefer headphones while I’m out for a walk. I live in NYC and the streets can get pretty loud, so I like to wear headphones or earbuds to avoid overstimulation. However, I can see the FILA x Revel Tune audio sunglasses being great for someone who wants to listen to music while still being fully aware of their surroundings while walking around. Especially as a woman, I think these glasses provide a level of safety and comfort that headphones can’t.
The prescription glasses were great for work
I’ve worn prescription glasses for 18 years, and some days working from home I just can’t be bothered to stab contacts into my eyes. I usually listen to music throughout the day on my Echo Show speakers, but I swapped the Echos for these glasses during my testing period.
I don’t typically use headphones while I work from home because I want to give my eardrums a break, so these audio glasses were great for me. I was able to listen to my music at a nice volume and it stayed at the same volume wherever I went in my apartment, whereas music from my speakers fades if I go to the kitchen or bathroom.
Credit: Miller Kern / Mashable
In addition to using the prescription glasses to listen to music while I worked, I also wore them to listen to audio from my phone while winding down for the day in bed, whether that was scrolling through TikTok or watching random videos that popped up on my Reddit feed.
I personally used the sunglasses more than the prescription glasses, but that’s because I simply don’t enjoy wearing glasses throughout the day — I wear my contacts almost all the time. I can see the prescription glasses being a great investment for someone who does wear glasses regularly.
Also, the fit of the glasses honestly wasn’t my favorite. I have a small head, and the arms felt too long for me, and the nose bridge also slid down pretty frequently. I think a different style probably would have been better for my face, but I can’t complain about comfort too much — the glasses felt lightweight and didn’t hurt while wearing them.
The FILA x Revel Tune glasses have surprisingly good audio quality
Whether I was inside or outside, I could hear my music or whatever audio I played clearly. The volume level was great for the type of product, though if I was around other people, I tended to keep the volume relatively low. And truthfully, I didn’t need to blast the volume to enjoy my music through the glasses.
The call audio is also good — I FaceTimed my friend and could hear her crystal clear. When I questioned how I sounded, she was confused as to why I even asked because I sounded no different than our other countless FaceTime calls during our lunch breaks or Sunday hangovers.
Credit: Miller Kern / Mashable
FILA x Revel Tune battery life
The FILA x Revel Tune glasses are marketed as having 8+ hours of battery life. The battery and powering the glasses on and off were the biggest learning curve for me. I had to read the manual to figure out how to turn the glasses on without pulling them directly from the charger.
To power them on and off, you hold down on the touch control area located on the temples of the glasses. I had a hard time finding the actual sweet spot where the touch control responds. Each time I tried to turn the glasses on or off, I had to tap around the arms for a bit before I actually triggered the power.
I could never get a good read of the actual battery life because I’d get frustrated with the touch power “button” and just connect the glasses to their charger so they’d power on. This was my biggest gripe with the glasses — otherwise, they were very user-friendly.
Are the FILA x Revel Tune audio glasses worth it?
Audio glasses in general are not a must-own item in my eyes. But they are a fun tech accessory to have. The FILA x Revel Tune glasses function great, have impressive sound quality, and have two styles (of both prescription glasses and sunglasses) to choose from.
The FILA x Revel Tune glasses have a base price of $138, which isn’t too steep for a wearable audio accessory. Obviously, adding prescription lenses will increase the price, but the process is just as easy as ordering any other pair of prescription glasses online.
If you’re going to wear the audio glasses regularly, I’d say they’re well worth the price. If you’re not, you can probably skip buying these.
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I had so much fun wearing these Bluetooth glasses on hikes, at the beach, and working from home.
