Comparing the genuine Meta Lab experience to the Meta Lab @ Best Buy experience left me with very different conclusions than I expected to have going in. Let me explain.
As a fan of VR, I’ve often struggled with the state of the retail experience as it relates to VR. Last year I visited a large Best Buy store and was so disgusted by the Meta Quest display I found there that I was motivated to write an editorial about the experience.
Since then, Meta has upped their retail strategy significantly, opening several first-party Meta Lab locations around the United States. Additionally, it has aggressively pursued an expansion of the Meta Lab in-store retail experience at select Best Buy locations, called Meta Lab @ Best Buy, with over 50 locations planned by the end of 2026.
Both retail experiences feature the Meta and Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, as well as the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, and Meta Quest VR headsets and related accessories.
After realizing my business travels would take me through New York City, I decided to visit both the Meta Lab flagship store in Manhattan, as well as a Meta Lab @ Best Buy location, and see how the experiences compare, and what they deliver to the general shopping public.
I made appointments for a Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses demo at a Best Buy in Westbury, NY and the Meta Lab in New York City. I received email confirmations and reminders for each appointment.
Meta Lab @ Best Buy
My first appointment was at the Best Buy in Westbury, NY. Walking in, the Meta Lab is off to the right, which is prime territory in retail space. The display was bright and modern, with Meta’s signature blue branding contrasting with light wood tones.
I was greeted quickly by an employee who later told me that he’s employed by Meta under a special arrangement with Best Buy. We confirmed that I was there for my demo and quickly walked to the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses area, where they had demo units charged and waiting. They had both sizes and colors available for the demo, and we determined that the standard size would fit me best. I chose to try the Sand colorway.
I was then fitted with the Neural Band that accompanies the Display glasses. Once we settled on size 3, it was time to start the demo.
And that’s where things went sideways.
It turns out that Meta was rolling out a “software update” that rendered the Neural Band useless and limited functionality of the glasses themselves. The employee was apologetic and still delivered a high-quality demo using the right stem touchpad controls to navigate the UI, to the best of his ability given the circumstances.
Despite my disappointment at being unable to fully demo the glasses and Neural Band, I was impressed by the employee’s knowledge, directing the demo from memory, unable to see what I was seeing in the monocular display.
He asked me questions to help guide his presentation. How would I envision using this function? Would I see myself doing this or that? His enthusiasm for the product came through. I asked him how long he’s been working there and he told me only two months – pretty impressive training, I thought to myself.
The challenge and friction I encountered was technological, frustrating yes, but I came away from the demo feeling positive about the experience, mostly due to the employee who did such a nice job in non-optimal circumstances. If I were actually going to purchase these glasses, I would not hesitate to go back for a full demo once Meta’s “software update” was completed.
While there, I also decided to demo a Meta Quest VR headset to see how they were being presented and sold.
My original employee had to go attend a training session, so I was handed off to a second employee. He quickly brought me to the Quest display. I asked about the differences between the Quest 3 and 3S, and he explained them competently. Again, I was impressed by the enthusiasm of the employee. He also asked me questions about my experience with VR and how I would be using the headset.
The Quest 3 I tried was pre-loaded with several games that demonstrate some of the most accessible standalone VR and MR experiences. Beat Saber, Golf+, First Encounters (mixed reality experience), and Cubism are the games I can recall, among others. Also notable is the “Streaming” experience which loads up a large virtual screen and displays TV and movie content.
The employee gave me the option to sit if I was uncomfortable. When I told him I was going to remain standing, he made sure I was positioned in a safe space, and I could hear him tell other customers to steer clear of my flailing hands.
After playing a bit of Beat Saber and trying the Streaming experience, I thanked the employee for the demo and took some time to look around the space at how these devices were being merchandised.
Meta Quest displays, Meta Lab @ Best Buy. Photos: Craig Storm
Compared to the horror show I encountered last year, this was VR retail nirvana. The shelves were stocked with headsets, accessories, and gift cards. There was digital signage highlighting some standout experiences and comparing headset models. The display table had both Quest 3 and Quest 3S mounted face-down, to better enable customers to compare the pancake and Fresnel lenses.
It’s impossible to miss the space given to the AI glasses, with large rows of models available to try on, and digital signage that includes a camera for virtual try-ons as well.
Overall I came away from the Meta Lab @ Best Buy experience feeling like I was treated with care by the employees, and served with respect by the merchandising and space design. Unfortunate as it was to have my demo affected by a software issue, I felt that it was time well spent, and as a customer I would be very comfortable buying in this environment.
Meta Lab Flagship Store – New York City
Walking down 5th Avenue, it’s hard to miss the Meta Lab, with its deep cobalt blue painted frontage, extending three stories up.
Upon entering the Meta Lab store, you enter a curated space that is trendy yet warm. AI glasses dominate the displays on the walls, with some Quest headsets on display as well in the main floor showroom. I was directed to take the elevator to the second floor and check in at the demo desk for my appointment.
I was asked to sit at a nearby table. Within what felt like 20 seconds, an employee approached with Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses and Neural Bands. After introducing himself, he fit me for the frames and Neural Band, and we commenced the demo.
This time I got to fully experience the Display glasses as intended, using the Neural Band to navigate the UI on the monocular display. I used maps to navigate to a nearby location, scrolled an Instagram feed, and took photos and videos. During the demo the Meta employee could follow along on a phone app, seeing what I was seeing to help guide the experience.
Throughout the demo we chatted about how interesting AR technology is. He was very clearly a tech enthusiast and transmitted his excitement openly. He delivered the demo professionally, asking me questions about my anticipated use cases, and also allowed me time to freely navigate around the UI without narration.
At the conclusion of the demo I was offered snacks and refreshments. A Meta manager approached to ask how I enjoyed my demo. I gave my feedback and also complimented the employee for doing a great job. There was zero sales pressure.
I asked about doing a demo of a Quest, and was directed back to the first floor. At this point the Meta Lab experience started to show cracks. The first employee I spoke to wasn’t trained on Quest demos, so they summoned a second employee who could set me up with a Quest. The second employee was barely trained on Quest, but was able to take me to a room in the back where there was room for a VR demo. I requested a Quest 3S this time.
A third employee, who was apparently more trained than the first two, now came to take over the demo. She struggled to put the Quest into a demo experience, and instead loaded me into a VR 360 Space video touring a space station and floating on a spacewalk.
This content was completely inappropriate for a demo where the employee never bothered to ask my experience level with VR or my comfort level with potential motion sickness triggers. Though seats were available in the room, it was not suggested that I sit for this experience.
I asked the employee if this was the usual demo, and they said yes. I asked about Beat Saber or First Encounters, and was told that those are available, but was not offered a way to launch those experiences.
Upon finishing my demo, I asked the employee if they enjoyed using VR, and they told me they don’t use it. They were pleasant enough, but you could tell they had no passion for the product. They were much more enthusiastic about the AI glasses, which we talked about as we walked together toward the front showroom.
They did take time to point out that the Meta VR Glasses are coming in the spring, and that they hope to have a unit on hand for training early in the year. They seemed much more excited about the VR Glasses as a product, so perhaps that’s a good sign for the future.
I had another look around at the myriad AI glasses available, and also noted the steady foot traffic in the store. There seemed to be a mix of locals and tourists visiting the store.
Overall my experience at the Meta Lab Flagship Store was a study in contradictions. The Display glasses demo was outstanding, with a knowledgeable and enthusiastic employee as my guide. The Quest demo found me passed around before a disinterested employee drew the short straw and threw me into a vomit-inducing 360 spacewalk video.
Conclusion and surprise
I was skeptical that the Meta Lab @ Best Buy could deliver an experience equal to the first-party Meta Lab experience.
On the Display glasses demo, I believe that if the Best Buy units were fully functional, I would have experienced an equally impressive demo experience as I did at the genuine Meta Lab in New York City. Both employees were enthusiastic and knowledgeable.
For the Quest demo, Best Buy wins hands down. The headset was in demo mode, with the menu of experiences ready to try. The employee was interested in my needs and had at least a passing interest in VR.
The Meta Lab Quest demo experience fell woefully short of what I expected to find, especially at their “flagship” store. Perhaps it’s a training issue, or a matter of hiring people with interest in VR. It will be very interesting to see how Meta Lab employees are trained to present the VR Glasses.
My hope is that I caught the Meta Lab on a bad day for Quest demos.
So for now, it seems there’s some genuine improvement to the state of VR retail, and the heavy lifting is being done by the Best Buy version of the Meta Lab experience.
Post-Visit Survey
For both demos I was sent a thank you email with a link to a survey to give feedback on my experiences. I was eager to provide both positive and negative feedback. In both cases, clicking the link opened a web page with this message:
“This survey has reached its quota and responses are no longer being solicited.”
I might have to write another editorial.
