Facebook and Ray-Ban team up to create smart sunglasses that can film what you see

16-09-2021 by MNP

Seven years after the failure of Google Glass, Facebook and Ray-Ban have teamed up to launch a pair of connected sunglasses.

The Wayfarer glasses, which retail for $ 299, are available in more than 20 styles, including the iconic Wayfarer. They are equipped with two cameras, speakers and a microphone. The glasses can take photos and videos. You just have to ask them (in English only for now) or press the support to get it working.

In a blog post, Facebook said the glasses allow people to "capture spontaneous moments in life as they occur from a unique first-person perspective." You no longer have to put your phone in front of your face to immortalize a concert, for example. We can fully enjoy the concert while recording what we see to review later. Obviously we say concert, but that only works for events in broad daylight. The camera sensors are modest and the goggle lenses are smoked.

In partnership with Ray-Ban, parent company Essilor Luxottica, Facebook, on Thursday September 9, 2021, introduced Ray-Ban Stories: Connected Glasses with Integrated Speakers and Microphone for Making Calls, a Non-Facebook Companion App and a Carrying Case load.

Videos are currently limited to 30 seconds - the perfect time for Instagram or Facebook stories.

Anticipating privacy concerns, Facebook said that by default, the glasses "collect the data necessary for their operation, such as the status of the battery to notify you when it is low, your address, email address and your password. Facebook login to verify it's you when you log into the Facebook View app. " Users can take photos and videos with the glasses, but cannot directly post to Facebook or any other social media platform. This is where the separate View app comes in.

They are available in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Italy, Ireland, and Australia.

However, convincing social media users to wear a smart device "all day" on their faces could be an uphill battle, even for Facebook.