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Facebook Launches The “Ray-Ban Stories”; Glasses That are Critically Easy-To-Use!

The long-awaited Luxottica-Facebook collaboration got under way on Thursday: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg Made announcement of "Ray-Ban Stories" on his Facebook post.
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The RayBan Stories
The RayBan Stories (Screen Shot from Facebook Post of Mark Zuckerberg)
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The RayBan Stories is very easy to use, thought it may come with lot of criticism that we may have to wait and watch but the Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg took on his Facebook post about the launch of RayBan stories, this new gadget is said to increase the user engagement of word’s larger social media platform.       

By pressing a button on the right temple, users can take photos and record videos using voice commands. In addition to the speakers, the smart glasses feature small microphones to allow them to connect to smartphones and receive music and podcasts via Bluetooth. Also, they come with microphones, so you can talk on the phone with them. 

Historically, smart glasses have been rolled out by other companies before Facebook. The social media rival – Snap launched its first Spectacles devices in 2016, while Google launched its ill-fated Google Glass devices back in 2013.

The Ray-Ban Stories are available at Ray-Ban stores and on Ray-Ban.com in a few countries including Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy, US, and UK. In addition to Amazon, Best Buy, Sunglass Hut and LensCrafters, the device will launch on Monday.  

The RayBan Stories 3

What are the Pros?

In addition to looking fashionable and not dorky, Facebook’s glasses don’t blatantly announce their technological capabilities. That’s good news for the tech company that sells smart glasses. 

Facebook’s glasses are available in three popular Ray-Ban models: the Wayfarer, Round and Meteor. The glasses can be customized by choosing different colors and different types of lenses, including sun, gradient, prescription, transition, ​polarized, and clear. Facebook chose the right partner. Ray-Ban sunglasses look exactly like you’d expect from the brand. The two cameras at the corners of the frame are what tell you these are special Ray-Bans.

There is no Facebook logo on the device or case. The only indication of the Facebook brand is on the product box. The move is smart given the apprehension people have these days about Facebook, as well as the distrust they feel about Google Glass devices, which also have cameras. Together, Facebook and Ray-Ban created glasses that let users stay present in the moment and capture what they see. Using your phone to take pictures creates a conundrum. When something incredible happens, either you enjoy the moment or you pull out your phone to document the event. Ray-Ban Stories solves that problem!

While riding and looking up at the sights, Ray-Ban Stories makes it possible to capture the views. With Facebook’s View app, the photos and videos are displayed in square format. Users can upload pics directly to Facebook rival TikTok or Snap, or download them to their phones’ camera roll. 

Photographs and videos can be taken in two ways. You can tell the glasses to take a picture or a video by saying “Hey Facebook, take a picture.” or “Hey Facebook, take a video”. Alternatively, you can short press the right temple button on the glasses to take a video or press and hold it to take a photo. According to Facebook, the glasses have a six-hour battery life. The charging case, which Facebook claims gives three full charges, is what puts them on charge.

What are The Cons?

There are no augmented reality features, which overlay digital content over the real world. When you look through them, you don’t notice anything different. Ray-Ban glasses lack augmented reality capabilities as announced earlier by Facebook. However, Snap’s latest Spectacles add AR, so the lack of AR is disappointing.

It doesn’t take the best pictures or videos with its two 5-megapixel cameras. Almost all modern smartphones have multiple lenses, which provide long-zooming capabilities or wide-angle shots for capturing more in a single shot. However, the glasses were great for capturing moments on the go.

In order to indicate users are shooting photos or videos, a white LED lights up on the top right side of the glasses. In addition to seeking feedback from several organizations, including the Future of Privacy Forum and the National Consumers League, Facebook took steps to make it clear when the glasses are in use. Most people do not even understand that the light means the glasses are recording, despite their focus on privacy.

Facebook and Ray-Ban are also promoting the Stories’ audio features. The glasses have two speakers at the bottom of each temple, but they’re not very good. There’s no comparison to the sound quality of headphones or earbuds. You’ll be bothered by the poor quality of the Ray-Ban Stories if you’re concerned about audio quality. In addition, although the speakers aren’t very loud, they’re loud enough that others nearby can hear your music, be it a private call or your most embarrassing Spotify playlist. Thus, wearing these glasses and listening to music on the bus or at the grocery store is out of the question! 

Additionally, the glasses aren’t water-resistant, so you’ll need to be careful if you wear them at the beach or by the pool. 

The RayBan Stories 4

As far as smart glasses go, Ray-Ban Stories make for a fine first effort. It’s wonderful to see Facebook partnering up with a brand that people will actually enjoy wearing. Instead of real smart glasses, the glasses are more like point-and-shoot cameras with speakers attached. 

The pictures aren’t as good as those of the iPhone, while the speakers aren’t as good as those of the AirPods. That’s a lot of sacrifice for a camera on your face. However, for now, the Ray-Ban Stories are not much more than a stylish toy that might make a great gift for a loved one.

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