Hi folks, I'm hard of hearing with hearing aids. I wrote a [review of G1 here](https://www.reddit.com/r/EvenRealities/comments/1pikk1j/g1_review_for_deaf_hoh/) and wanted to give some early feedback on the G2. I use G2s for captioning and notifications. This is not a comprehensive review of all G2 functions and especially not the AI. 

There's a lot of overlap with my G1 review. If you just want to read the changes between G1 & G2, read the "Δ G1" bits. 

**TL;DR:** I find G2 transcription helpful enough that I wear it daily (no prescription). BUT I would suggest waiting a few more months unless you're willing to ride out the early-adopter rollercoaster. 

\*\*- Fit -\*\*

Like the G1s, the back pads of the glasses sit comfortably behind my BTE hearing aids. I wear Phonak Lumity and they have \~1 cm of clearance. I tried them on with my bulkier Phonak Bolero SP + powertube and the back pads sat right behind the BTE but still wearable.

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: After adjustment, the G2 are more comfortable for me. Even though they weigh the same, they feel lighter on the face. Maybe because of the thinner arms. I feel like they don't push out my ears as much but it wasn't a lot to start with. I wear the glasses without the silicone sleeves and it did hurt for the first few days. I had the same kind of pain with new hearing aids so I just waited it out. Now they don't hurt. YMMV

\*\*- Look -\*\*

Like the G1s, the G2s look very much, but not 100%, like normal glasses. They're inconspicuous enough that no one has ever asked me about them. After I bring it up people say they noticed the green reflection from the waveguide at some angles but didn't think about it. The lenses are flat, not curved like normal glasses.

Once noticed, people can see my eyes move a little to read. This has never been mentioned otherwise and the text can be positioned over the face of the person you're talking to, giving the impression of eye contact.

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: 

The brightness now also goes low enough that you can put it at 1% at night and it's barely visible from other people's point of view but still legible. No more cyberpunk eyeshadow! 

I have brown G1Bs and green G2Bs. I'm absolutely obsessed with the green. My photos don't do a good job of capturing the color but [this pic is very accurate ](https://www.reddit.com/r/EvenRealities/comments/1r1pq5z/comment/o4r8inu/)(credit: u/Ok_Prompt2280). The most notable difference is the light colored arms take away some of the frames visual thickness. The brown G1s feel more of a "chunky" style frame.

\*\*- Display -\*\*

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: It's bigger and brighter. I can easily read it outdoors without sunshades. I've noticed at night there can be spots that look like dead pixels but it hasn't been an issue for me.

With the 2 waveguides I'm finally able to use notifications alongside captions. This has been very useful to me. My phone stays in my pocket so I don't distraction spiral, but I don't miss texts, emails, or calendar reminders. I dismiss spam and keep the important notifications or make quick notes for later. 

\*\*- Battery -\*\*

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: WOW. This is by far the most noticeable improvement for me. Whereas my G1s have started to last 1-3 hours with captioning, the G2s last all day. After about 12 hours with heavy captioning I will have \~30% battery left.

It should be noted that my phone needs recharging halfway through the day. But I went from having to carefully plan when I could wear my glasses to being able to use them as an all-day accessory. This is what I was hoping for and I'm glad to see ER was able to make it happen. 

\*\*- Apps/OS -\*\*

EvenOS:

\* \\+ I liked the original app layout and I'm glad they kept it. It's clean and intuitive. 

\* \\+ The depth and height adjustment is better.

\* \\+ Allows you to customize Conversate. Turn off AI pop-ups so it's just captions. Turn off captions so it's just AI. Turn off both so it's just the recorded transcript and AI summary on your phone.

\* \\- No option to turn off ALL AI, including summaries.

\* \\+/- Records all Conversate sessions to a file.

\* \\- No more ‘select all’ to delete Conversate files. I have to individually delete dozens daily.

\* \\- No option to use Conversate without saving the session to a file. This restricts where I can wear the glasses.

\* \\- No offline captions. Makes it impossible to use in some buildings and challenging in situations where wifi/data are weak or intermittent. 

\* \\- Captions slow down after a while and need to be restarted.

\* \\+ No more moving animation while Conversate is running! This is a small but appreciated update.

\* \\- Personally I miss night mode.

MentraOS is another app that supports the G1. In discord they intend to support the G2, ["targeting G2 support in March" ](https://discord.com/channels/973327320247042099/1340942811591217223/1469470109360848917). My G1 captioning experience was very good with MentraOS. The main issue was battery. With the improved battery life of G2 I'm hoping this will not be a limiter anymore.

\*\*- Caption quality -\*\*

The accuracy of captions is improved from the G1, probably due to the 4 microphones. 

There's a slight delay so it's better for filling in blanks than relying on it for the conversation. I ask people to repeat themselves less, but I wouldn't be able to follow a conversation without help from my hearing aids.

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: If I had to estimate caption accuracy, I'd say the G1 captions are 60-80% (with EvenOS) and G2s are 70-95%.

\*\*- Microphones -\*\*

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: Wow again! Where the G1 mics were nearly impossible to use, the G2 mics are my default now. They're directional but do a decent job of picking up voices in the background too. The new mics aren't as omnidirectional as phone mics and not quite “cone-of-silence” directional as my hearing aids. They're a happy medium. I can talk to people in a crowded room but also pick up some of what's going on in the living room while I'm in the kitchen.

I tried out my phone mic but found the experience wasn't as good. Have not had to use a lapel mic yet. 

\*\*- Connectivity and Setup -\*\*

\*\*Δ G1\*\*: Using the phone mics has the side benefit of being able to keep my hearing aids connected while also using my glasses. No more Bluetooth conflict!

Connectivity is better than the G1 but still a work in progress. I reconnect several times a day. 90% of those reconnects are painless - just opening the app and waiting 30s. But 10% have been more in-depth, with having to restart glasses, restart the app, or toggle silent mode to get them into a responsive state again.

I had to set up my phone so it won't kill the app in the background. Used [https://dontkillmyapp.com/](https://dontkillmyapp.com/), Google, and AI to help troubleshoot.

For my Samsung phone, the main culprits were battery saver, run-in-background, and locking the app.

\*\*- Limitations -\*\* 

\* Wifi/data connection is key.

\* Captions struggle where microphones, hearing aids, and softwares struggle. Multiple speakers, noisy situations, soft voices, heavy accents, etc. It helps in restaurants with small groups, theaters (I don't have to wear theater glasses anymore!), and one-on-ones.

\* No diarization. Line breaks are good enough that it's not a serious problem but it can be confusing in a group.

 

\*\*Δ G1\*\*:

\* R1 - there is a bug where starting Conversate from the ring will stop prematurely. When it works, it's amazing.

\* Captions slow down after a bit (15-60min) and require restarting Conversate. When the R1 Conversate works this is quick. When it doesn't, it makes Conversate effectively useless until I can get an opportunity to pull out my phone.

\*\*- Summary & Suggestions -\*\* 

I love the G2 and am happy to see all the improvements. At this stage it's not something I can suggest to anyone outside of tech enthusiasts with expendable cash. It's \*\*incredibly\*\* close though. To get there - 1. the connection between glasses and the app has to be “set it and forget it” and 2. The apps have to work without needing to restart.

If you're on the edge of whether to purchase or not, I would suggest waiting a few months until either the SDK & marketplace are public or MentraOS supports the G2.

G2 Early review for Deaf & HoH