EssilorLuxottica have developed and released a pair of smart glasses in conjunction with Facebook under the banner of the Ray-Ban brand. Coming in two of Ray-Ban's most iconic styles, the Wayfarer Round and Meteor, the glasses contain substantially more tech than appearances suggest.
An optimised snapdragon processor, integrated 5-megapixel cameras for pictures and video, open-ear speakers, and three-microphone audio arrays for both calls and videos, and the option to have these as optical glasses for everyday wear, or sunglasses, these are designed not merely to be an accessory, but to potentially be an essential that replaces mobile phones in many situations. For example, the bluetooth sporting frames would enable complete control of calls without the need to even touch your mobile.
These glasses are clearly aimed at a different market sector than previous attempts, such as the failed Google Glass, and others like the Snapchat frames not hitting the mark. This time round the target is obviously the influencer community. It seems that the two companies think influencers are likely to find this appealing, with the idea of being always able to capture everyday events without requiring a separate go-pro camera strapped on being a likely selling point, and the luxury cachet of Ray-Ban they believe sealing the deal, with these coming in at a premium price of £230.
Whatever the case, we hope these fail in the same way all previous smart glasses attempts fail. Each set of smart glasses released come closer and closer to realising the fears and concerns of people when the first Google Glass came out, of being recorded, and snooped on, concerns which saw businesses in California banning people from wearing them in their spaces. Indeed the dystopian future that devices like this potentially usher in, of being constantly monitored and concerned about everything we say even in casual conversation, is not one we would like to see.
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