Facebook sees potential of smart glasses in Ray-Ban deal

The Ray-Ban branded eyewear differentiates itself from normal glasses with the deft miniaturization of a microphone and speaker within the frame, ensuring that the wearer can juggle their online and real lives with ease.

Confusingly referred to as Stories, an apparent reference to the strings of pictures, videos and posts pioneered by Snapchat, the fashionable tech accessory has been fashioned from the frames of Ray-Ban’s classic Wayfarer design, with Facebook determining that Ray-Ban carries greater social cachet these days as it struggles to shake widespread privacy fears.

Lauding the $299 device, Monisha Perkash, product lead at Facebook’s Reality Labs division, said: “Our mission is to help build tools that will help people feel connected any time, anywhere. We want to create a sense of social presence, the feeling that you’re right there with another person sharing the same space, regardless of physical distance.”

Not happy with kickstarting the virtual reality segment with the Oculus Quest, Facebook clearly has its eyes on augmented reality (AI), the long-dreamed-of goal of fusing digital and real-world environments, with Stories being a stepping stone in that direction.

Taking advantage of advancements in miniaturization, Facebook has been able to cram a wealth of technology into a frame that is only a few millimeters thicker and five grams heavier than a standard pair of Wayfarers.

This includes dual cameras capable of capturing 5 megapixel images, short 30-second video clips, open ear speakers and a microphone for audio.

Mindful of the potential privacy implications of this arrangement, Facebook has built in fail-safe measures such as an automatic power off of cameras and microphone when not in use and a hardwired LED to notify people in your vicinity when recording.