If the idea of camera sunglasses seems familiar, perhaps that’s because it sounds like Snapchat Spectacles, which launched in 2016. In what I can only imagine is a loving tribute, Facebook has named its camera sunglasses “Stories” after the other signature product that Facebook/Instagram lifted from Snapchat. Ray-Ban created the first pair of aviator sunglasses for military fighter pilots in 1937. They continue to create iconic designs known for top-notch performance today. Except they’re made in partnership with Facebook and have built-in cameras that are hard to spot. Even while pushing a computer that sits on your face and looks quite similar to regular glasses, Facebook and Ray-Ban are emphasizing the importance of making other people aware that you may be recording them .
As you’d expect from Ray-Ban, even with all of those smarts inside these glasses look incredible smart, too. You can choose from three of its classic styles – the Wayfarer, Round or Meteor – all of which pack in the same quality, clubmaster luxury and fine design that the company is so well known for. Even though all of the features are hidden away, the glasses ensure privacy by including a little light that illuminates when the camera is recording.
Facebook, meanwhile, has been working on these Ray-Bans since at least 2019, and it almost certainly will take a swing at AR glasses in the future. But in terms of both commercial availability and advanced features, the new Facebook Ray-Bans are years behind Snap’s glasses. It’s the “effortless” part that will raise eyebrows behind the plastic frames. Facebook has made a pair of smart glasses—even if they’re not true AR glasses—that people might actually want to wear. With this product, Facebook is claiming the face as real estate for its own technology.
Many other versions will follow, and we’ll need to look out not just for Ray-Bans, but for all types of devices recording us in more subtle ways. Zuckerberg calls Ray-Ban Stories “one milestone on the path” to immersive augmented-reality glasses. In 2020, Facebook announced Project Aria, which uses AR-enabled glasses to map the terrain of the public and some private spaces. This mapping effort intends to build up geolocation information clubmaster and intellectual property to feed the data needs of future AR glasses wearers—and likely advance Facebook’s contribution to the metaverse. As Zuckerberg mentioned in a video introducing Ray-Ban Stories, he plans to ultimately replace mobile phones with Facebook smart glasses. That brand’s trusted legacy of “cool” could make Facebook’s glasses appeal to many more people than Snap Spectacles and other camera glasses.
Those microphones also let the glasses be controlled by voice, for a hands-free experience. A white LED lights up on the top right of the glasses when users take a photo or video to indicate the glasses are shooting a photo or video. Despite clubmaster the focus on privacy, most people might not even understand the light means the glasses are recording. At first glance, recording with Facebook’s glasses may not seem much different from snapping a photo or video with a smartphone.
What’s more, for all the smarts that are packed into the glasses, they’re all tucked away. There’s no danger that you’ll be mistaken for some nerdy person from the future, since the looks are just as good as the features. It is like having the world’s best memory, a full recollection of every fun, exciting, touching or important moment you experience. And what’s more you can really experience them, staying in the moment and not glued to your phone.
Andrew Bosworth, the Facebook executive who heads up Reality Labs, said the glasses were “designed to help people live in the moment and stay connected to the people they are with and the people they wish they were with. [Ray-Ban] has been nothing short of stellar in this partnership and through their commitment to excellence we were able to deliver on both style and substance in a way that will redefine the expectations of smart glasses. The glasses have a physical switch on the inside to turn off the capture features, while they will also flash an LED light on the front so people know they are being recorded or in a photo.