WEARABLE tech is the talk of the town thanks to the Apple Vision Pro.

But with a hefty price tag of $3499 (£2,773) it’s way out of the affordability range for most people.

Time to lay back and try the XREAL Air 2 Pros

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Time to lay back and try the XREAL Air 2 Pros
Tiny screens make it look like you're seeing a massive display floating ahead

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Tiny screens make it look like you’re seeing a massive display floating ahead

There are some less powerful alternatives around for those who are more interested in basic visual content – ie watching TV and movies – than augmented reality features.

That’s where XREAL hopes to come in with its smart glasses that are a fraction of the cost – and the company has plans for something even bigger in March to take on Apple.

So, what better place to test out a wearable than during a long flight in the comfort of Virgin Atlantic Upper Class, where I can lay back and see if the XREAL Air 2 Pro is worthwhile.

XREAL Air 2 Pro: How does it work?

The XREAL Air 2 Pro can connect to anything that supports USB-C – which is most things these days – so Android phones, laptops and even games consoles.

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Obviously, the iPhone 15 has just adopted USB-C so it works with that too, but for older iPhones still with the lightning cable you really need a separate device called the “Beam” for it to work fully – more on that later.

The XREAL Air 2 Pro basically creates a virtual projection of whatever is on the screen of the device you’ve plugged in.

What you see can be expanded to create a virtual floating screen up to 130-inches wide, all generated from two 0.55-inch Sony micro-OLED displays with a 1080p resolution.

The XREAL Air 2 Pro is a game-changing gadget for a totally different viewing experience, especially if you love good telly and a movie

The Pro version has electrochromic dimming so you can overlay the glasses with a clear or shaded view – an attachable light cover makes it completely dark.

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There are swappable nose clips to keep it comfortable and you can even add prescription lens (at an additional cost).

XREAL has an app of AR games called Nebula… but I couldn’t get it to work, which leads onto my next point.

See the XREAL Air 2 Pro AR glasses in action

XREAL Air 2 Pro: Set-up

Set-up of the XREAL Air 2 Pro is a bit of a faff depending on the device you’re using.

If you’ve got a USB-C smartphone then it’s certainly a lot easier – although not every handset is supported so be sure to check XREAL’s list before.

But with an iPhone using a lightning cable (and other non-supported devices) you’ll have to buy the separate Beam display adapter – and there are a whole load of wires involved as you can see in the image below.

So many wires!

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So many wires!

While this is a bit messy, the Beam enables you to switch between modes such as a static screen, one that moves with you or a picture-in-picture (so the video is a small insert in the corner).

If you’re using a computer, you can create multiple screens around you.

Once connected to your phone, it essentially mirrors whatever is shown on the handset’s screen – so you need not miss out on any apps.

Of course, when flying you really need to think ahead and download some shows or movies, which is exactly what I did with Netflix.

XREAL Air 2 Pro: What’s it like?

Laying back and being able to watch what I want on my Virgin Atlantic flight from a huge virtual screen no one else could see was a dream.

I prefer keeping the display to a locked position – the option that moves with you made me feel dizzy.

The images are really sharp though 4K would have been even better.

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Sound comes out of tiny speakers built into the glasses which were not powerful enough for a flight, so Bluetooth earbuds were definitely a must (and I would probably advise them away from flights too so you’re not annoying people).

The ability to dim the glasses is the key difference between the XREAL Air 2 and XREAL Air 2 Pro, which is a handy addition, however most of the time I preferred using it with complete darkness. You can just add the cover to make it 100 per cent black.

Unfortunately it's near impossible to show what I see but it's something like this

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Unfortunately it’s near impossible to show what I see but it’s something like this

XREAL Air 2 Pro: Verdict

The XREAL Air 2 Pro is a game-changing gadget for a totally different viewing experience, especially if you love good telly and a movie like me.

They don’t look wacky and they’re pretty comfortable too, especially when tucked under a cosy quilt on a flight with Virgin Atlantic.

I just wish there weren’t so many wires to get tangled in.

And the Beam device should be included with every unit as standard, not treated as an extra add-on to pay for (at £119 / $119) as it provides so much more.

The XREAL Air 2 Pro on its own costs £449 / $449 which is also quite steep for most consumers.

XREAL recently revealed a new Air 2 Ultra with added hand tracking that’s being mooted as a real rival to the Apple Vision Pro which I’m intrigued to try next.

This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk

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