Forget the Oakley Meta Vanguard — these lesser-known smart specs for runners incorporate a real heads-up display

• Engo has revealed the engo3 smart glasses, with an AR heads-up display
• Designed to display vital stats in your lens as if they were floating 3m in front, the smart glasses don't capture content or play music
• The glasses are compatible with Apple and Garmin watches, among others

Engo has revealed the engo3 smart glasses, a device designed to show you an augmented-reality view of your vital stats during a run.

Using Engo's 'light AR technology', the engo3 specs use a custom interface to take data from smartphones and wearables — which exact models, we're not sure, but we know the list includes Apple and the best Garmin watches — and show the data as if it were hovering around 3 meters in front of you. The info displayed includes 'heart rate, pace, cadence and more' as well as cues for customisable structured workouts such as interval training.

While they do share a similar outward design to Meta's Oakley Meta Vanguard specs, their functionalities are very, very different. The Vanguard glasses can takes information from Garmin watches, but will either read it out to you via the in-built speakers or overlay it on top of footage taken by the onboard camera. You never see it as a heads-up display.

On the other hand, the engo3 glasses don't have an onboard AI assistant and can't play music, serve you notifications or capture content like the Vanguards do. They're purely about workout guidance.

The engo3 press release addressed this as a deliberate choice, stating: 'ENGO's approach focuses on the following: to optimize weight, the user experience, and battery life. This means no camera, no sound, and no superfluous features that could add weight or distract the user.

'This choice goes against the grain of many smart glasses that offer a multitude of additional options, often a source of distraction.'

The engo3 offers up to 20 hours of battery life. Available now, they cost $399 USD / £299 (around AU$575).

Analysis: What I wanted out of the Oakley Meta Vanguards

When I first unboxed the Oakley Meta Vanguards, I was telling another runner friend about the Garmin integration. Initially excited at the prospect of seeing her stats in the glasses, I had to let her down and tell her it's only overlaid on the footage the Vanguards take.

The engo3 specs, which eschew the other smart glasses frippery in favor of the Iron Man-style heads-up display, is much more like what people have in mind when they think of futuristic smart glasses. I'm excited to try them.

We reviewed the Engo 2 smart glasses back in 2023 and found them clever, but underbaked — here's hoping now, in the age of smart glasses, tech has evolved and the sequel has succeeded where its predecessor couldn't.

The best Garmin watches for all budgets

➡️ Read our full guide to the best Garmin watches
1. Best overall:
Garmin Venu 4
2. Best premium:
Garmin Fenix 8
3. Best budget:
Garmin Vivoactive 6

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