Ray-Ban Stories: Much-awaited smart glasses from Facebook, EssilorLuxottica are here!
Facebook—in collaboration with Ray-Ban's parent company and global eyewear major EssilorLuxottica—has finally unveiled its long-awaited smart glasses, called the Ray-Ban Stories. The smart glasses come equipped with dual cameras, open-ear speakers, a microphone, and voice assistant support to help you stay connected with the world and "truly be present in life's most important moments," says Facebook. Here's everything to know about Ray-Ban Stories.
Ray-Ban Stories offer dual integrated 5MP cameras—one on each side of the frame—to take first-person photos and up to 30-second-long videos using the capture button or Facebook Assistant voice commands. There's a three-microphone audio array for "richer voice and sound transmission for calls and videos." The smart glasses get built-in open-ear speakers and a hard-wired capture LED that notifies people when you're taking photos/videos.
Interestingly, Ray-Ban Stories are paired with the new Facebook View camera roll app and the photos and videos captured are synced with the app. The Facebook View app, which is available on Android and iOS platforms, lets you import, save, and edit the photos/videos as well as share using other apps on the device like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, among others.
Welcome back to the moment.
— Ray-Ban (@ray_ban) September 9, 2021
Discover our first generation of smart glasses that keeps you connected. So you can keep your eyes on the world around you.
Created in collaboration with @Facebook, #RayBanStories are the new way to capture, share and listen. pic.twitter.com/Oe2VBJctUW
Talking about Ray-Ban Stories, Andrew Bosworth, Vice-President of Augmented and Virtual Reality at Facebook, said these smart 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."
The Ray-Ban Stories have been launched at $299 (roughly Rs. 22,000) in the US. Initially, they will be sold online and at select Ray-Ban stores. The smart glasses can be picked up in 20 style combinations, including the iconic Ray-Ban Wayfarer style and five colors. As of now, they will be available in six countries: the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Italy, and Australia.
Facebook has a "complicated relationship" with user privacy, but the company says Ray-Ban Stories users need not worry about it. "We baked privacy directly into the product design and functionality of the full experience, from the start," says the social media giant, adding there are hardware protections and "numerous built-in features to provide control and peace of mind to both device owners and bystanders."
Meanwhile, Facebook is also not worrying about competition or comparison right now, despite the Ray-Ban Stories bearing resemblance to the Snap Spectacles. Monisha Perkash, who leads the product team at Facebook's Reality Labs, says, "Actually, you've never seen glasses like these. They look just like standard Wayfarers. We believe...this will be the first pair of smart glasses people will truly want to wear."
