Every now and then, a piece of tech comes along that changes the way you live a certain aspect of your life. It might be something you never thought you needed. Maybe something some movie that’s supposed to be in the distant future showed you a version of? But one thing’s for sure. It’s a little like meeting the one. It certainly was how I felt with the Huawei x Gentle Monster Eyewear II.

The second version of the Chinese tech giant’s stylish wearable is now in the Philippines. Listening to music or taking calls while on the go has never looked this good.

Choose your style: The many faces of Huawei x Gentle Monster Eyewear II

I’ve been eyeing Gentle Monster’s Her sunglasses ever since I saw Son Ye Jin wear them on Crash Landing on You. Frames so big, they can practically make anyone look like a K-drama star. Living in Berlin at that time with no Gentle Monster store nearby, it was hard to try it on before buying.

Sunglasses, for me, had to be bought in a physical store because of how picky I can be. But when the Smart Myma style of this collab landed on my desk, I totally forgot about the style I’ve been looking at for months. They had Her in the first generation line-up but why miss out on Eyewear II’s new features?

Sure, this style is ginormous and can look quite comical on those with small faces. But if you’re someone like me who’s got a pretty strong jawline that makes your choice of glasses quite limited — well, lucky us. This style is perfect. For the rest of you lucky people with smaller faces, there’s always the smaller but still as eye-catching Smart Lang.

People who wish to opt for prescription glasses have the Smart Kubo and Smart Havana. For the best of both worlds, you can always switch to transition lenses to give you the best of both worlds.

The future looks stylish

Now on to the tech. Sure, there’s no doubt the glasses are stylish. But what makes them special or better than the first generation? A lot.

I tried the first generation Eyewear during IFA and one of my first comments was how the arms weren’t so comfortable. This issue was addressed in Eyewear II. I personally find that they stay on better with the way the arms bend towards the end. After wearing these glasses for hours, there was also no discomfort.

It also has five hours of music playback and up to three hours when used for phone calls. It also easily pairs with your current phone — even if it’s not Huawei. These glasses connect almost instantly to my iPhone 12 Pro as soon as I put them on.

The audio is also pretty good. Some say the bass falls a bit flat but I personally don’t notice that. The audio quality is pretty at par with your usual, wireless earphones. Calls come in crystal clear and the mic also functions really well even when you’re in a pretty noisy environment.

Control on your fingertips

The controls are pretty easy and to be honest — are pretty cool. Pairing the Eyewear II only requires a gentle pinch on the left temple. The voice assistant, meanwhile, is activated by a double-tap also on the left temple.

To move on to the next song on your playlist, you just need to swipe your finger on the right arm of your glasses to the front. Swiping back brings you to the previous song.  Doing the same gestures on the left side will control the volume.

Removing the glasses will automatically pause music playback and will resume the moment you put it back on within three minutes.

Sure, it’s great — but what about the negatives?

The glasses do have enough battery to power through a long chat or a decent listening session. When you need to charge it, you pop it into its case that — sadly — doesn’t have a battery. So you have to keep it plugged in with a USB-C cable to get some juice and listening time back. Maybe the next versions on Eyewear will have a battery built into the case but that might also mean a little more added weight.

There’s a little bit of audio spilling out. Sure, a person who’s nearby might hear that there’s music coming out of your glasses but it’s not enough for them to recognize any words or music. No need to worry about people eavesdropping. The audio leak is also hardly noticeable outdoors.

I always felt awkward talking on the phone using my AirPods when my hair is down and they could hardly be seen. I’ve often gotten stares from people who think I’m talking to myself. Those stares got worse with Eyewear II. During a pretty long phone call that lasted while walking through Greenbelt, I’m pretty sure I left a couple of people thinking I was having quite the monologue. But who cares about what other people think? My dog thinks my Smart Myma is cool and his is the only opinion that’s valid.

The Huawei x Gentle Monster Eyewear II is available wherever you can score Huawei devices in the Philippines. It currently retails for PhP 21,999.