Scuderia Ferrari, the undisputed kings of merchandise in the Formula 1 paddock, have partnered with RayBan sunglasses and Mark Zuck’s Meta to deliver a limited-edition branded pair of “Meta Wayfarer Scuderia Ferrari Miami LTD” smart sunglasses. The smart glasses in regular black have been available for a few years now, and you can get a pair for $299, but with the Ferrari logo and a new blue colorway to commemorate the Scuderia’s blue livery for the Miami Grand Prix, just 1,000 examples will be sold at $499 each. Ferrari tax, mate.
Since these dorky glasses hit the market, I was hard pressed to find a single use case for them, but this partnership with Fezza has made me rethink that stance. The only good use of these glasses would be to make the drivers use them to live-stream the race from inside their own helmets. Streaming Formula 1 is about the only way I would go back to using my Facebook account for anything but delivering my Instagram feed to my grandmother.
Seeing the race, in its entirety, from the perspective of the driver would be pretty rad. F1 currently has some “Driver’s Eye” cameras, but the series uses them infrequently and for short bursts. I’d like to watch Charles struggle to pass his soon-to-be-unemployed teammate from inside his helmet, using the integrated “ultra-wide 12 megapixel cameras” and hear the frustration in his voice through the Google Glass Meta Wayfarer’s integrated mic when the pit wall responds to his questions with “Checking.” I mean how great would it have been to be inside Carlos’ head last season when he first said “Stop inventing!”?
Yes, F1 is probably best viewed from the drivers’ line of sight. This is a good idea and should be implemented immediately.
The first limited-edition Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, in an exclusive Scuderia Ferrari colorway for Miami 2024. Ray-Ban Meta for Scuderia Ferrari Wayfarer Miami Limited Edition brings together the legacy of Ferrari, timeless Ray-Ban design and cutting-edge Meta tech. The iconic Wayfarer is seamlessly integrated with camera, audio and Meta AI so you can listen, call, capture and livestream right from your glasses. It comes in a unique blue frame and blue-mirrored lens pairing, finished with the signature Scuderia Ferrari shield logo on the temple. Tifosi will know that this blue is inspired by Azzurro Dino & Azzurro La Plata, Ferrari shades steeped in the team’s history and racing heritage. There’s only 1000 editions worldwide and every pair comes in dedicated Azzurro packaging.