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Facebook has been working on a secret project; smart glasses: a pair of glasses with a built-in tiny video camera. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg recently wore a version of the glasses during an interview at the company’s headquarters and said they were still in the early stages of development.
The giant social media company recently teamed up with Ray-Ban to create a pair of high-tech sunglasses that can take pictures and videos. And for gamers, the Ray-Ban Smart Glasses allow wearers to bring their favourite online casino games wherever they go. The new shades will connect wirelessly to a smartphone, allowing wearers to snap pictures by tapping a button on the side of the glasses.
Ray-Ban, the iconic American brand of sunglasses, is jumping into the era of wearable technology with a new line of smart glasses that can take photos, record video, answer phone calls and play music and podcasts. Ray-Ban Stories are designed to do everything that regular sunglasses can do but also include some extra features. The company said it is embracing new technology as part of an effort to attract younger customers.
But now, with consumers increasingly comfortable with cameras on their phones, tech companies are taking another shot at wearable cameras. This time, they are not necessarily focused on making them tiny or discrete but instead are trying to make them useful.
Some of the biggest technology companies like Google and Silicon Valley have tirelessly tried to introduce new Smart Glass products hoping that they will finally get us to put wearable computers on our faces. All these entailed developing Smart Glasses that can project information onto the lenses and take pictures of what we’re looking at, read our emotions, and help us communicate with each other.
But as Google Glass has faded from view, a new crop of start-ups have been working to create smart glasses that look more like ordinary eyeglasses. And this time, it seems the technology and the public might finally be ready for each other.
Smart glasses technology includes a pair of connected glasses with a small screen that creates a visual layer in the world. With two cameras, two micro speakers, three microphones and a Snapdragon computer processor chip, the connected glasses have enhanced vision, noise cancellation and much more.
But the reality is that we’re still not sure if these glasses or some of the other items we’re showing off will become popular. Do people want to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on technologies that many will dismiss as speculative? Many tech enthusiasts will dismiss these products as too expensive or not practical for everyday use. Yet, these products need to be affordable enough for ordinary people to buy and use without guile or prejudice.
Suppose Apple, for instance, had not stumbled upon the idea of designing iPhone cases and lenses with touchscreens rather than moving two fingers on a touchscreen. In that case, it’s almost certain that Apple would have launched an email app that allowed users to compose emails by drawing on a paper document. The idea of using an Apple product beyond its core functionality as a gadget is almost foreign to it. Most people would assume that these companies would find ways to make money without resorting to risky technology.
With the new Smart Glass features, Facebook enters another realm — encouraging users to share their thoughts and reactions to what is happening in the world around them. You can also share your YouTube gaming experience while also spawning fresh opportunities with friends and family. Mr Bosworth dismissed claims that Facebook picked up the Smart Glass project from where they left off. “This project has never been tried before; we have never had a design like this before,” he said. He further put forward that Facebook and Ray-Ban had their focus on fashion more than the technological aspect.
A couple of concerns arose over the tiny flickering light, which will notify people that you are recording and, therefore, infringe on privacy. Moreover, users need to be registered on Facebook to enjoy the technology with these Luxottica owned glasses.
It’s no secret that we’re all grabbing more information from phones, tablets and computers. The problem is that just as we come to expect more out of technology, we expect less from it. Smart Glasses exists to bridge the gap between what we see and what is said about a product. This means that even if you don’t know what Smart Glasses is or how it works, you can still start using it on your next project and understand its capabilities much better.
