So I got myself a pair of the Oakley Meta glasses in brown smoke color. I was searching all over the internet and YouTube but couldn’t find a decent look at the Oakley Meta in Brown Smoke frame color. There aren’t many videos or pictures out there about this color. I’m making this post for people like you and me who are interested in purchasing the glasses but don’t know what this brown smoke color is.
My first choice, though, was the clear frame version. And let me tell you, finding real-world images of it was impossible. Sure, Oakley and Meta have those beautiful, perfectly lit marketing shots, but what do they actually look like outside of a photo studio?
So I got an idea: the Oakley Meta HSTN is modeled after the original HSTN line. I headed to the Oakley store to check out the clear frame in person. And that’s where I found the dealbreaker. The regular HSTN clear frame just didn’t work for me. I look a too dorky—but the real issue was this: the black band, or rim, across the top of the frame. Because the frame was clear, that black line was extremely noticeable. When I looked in the mirror, all I could see was this dark stripe across my face… it basically gave me a permanent unibrow! That’s why I went with the Brown Smoke instead.
Despite making the entire purchase blind, I’m so happy with this frame color. The Brown Smoke gives you that cool transparent look without highlighting the internal black components, which means no more unibrow effect! It’s also much darker than those glossy promotional photos suggest. What I love most is how dynamic the color is—it truly looks like a mineral gem, maybe a dark moonstone. The color shifts and changes constantly based on the lighting, giving you a completely different look indoors versus out
“Let’s take a look at the Sapphire Transition lenses in the sun. This is about as dark as they’ve gotten for me so far. Despite that, they offer a comfortable level of tint, and I think the blue tint looks fantastic with the Brown Smoke frame. If blue isn’t your color, the Amethyst or Ruby transition colors would also be worth considering for a bolder look.
When it comes to the lens quality, I have to give credit where it’s due. Oakley’s proprietary lens technology is legit. The clarity is definitely better than most other lenses I’ve used, and they seem to stay clean longer, attracting less dirt than usual. I had my doubts about their specific coatings, but the results are clear.
I was also seriously impressed with their prescription service. I normally order my glasses from FramesDirect online, so this was my first time ordering directly from Oakley. They didn’t just fill my prescription; they optimized it.
I’ve made a companion video about the frames and the battery life and feel free to watch it below to learn more.