Meta Unveils Camera-Free AI Glasses Amid Spy-Cam Concerns
IT DAILY ·
✦ AI Summary
Meta on the 24th (Korea time) unveiled the camera-free AI glasses "Ray-Ban Meta Audio."
The product centers on music listening, calls, and AI voice conversations, and does not have photo or video recording functions or camera-based recognition features.
Meta also unveiled a camera-equipped third-generation model, and the Ray-Ban Meta Audio starts at USD 349 and will ship on October 13.
Meta on the 24th (Korea time) unveiled camera-free AI glasses. The new products include the "Ray-Ban Meta Audio" and other next-generation AI glasses. Meta introduced a model without recording functions at a time when concerns about hidden-camera misuse have continued to surround its existing AI glasses. The "Ray-Ban Meta Audio" focuses on music, calls, and AI voice conversations.
Meta also unveiled a third-generation model equipped with a camera at the same time. The company said it separated the lineup so users could choose whether to have a camera depending on their intended use. The "Ray-Ban Meta Audio" is Meta's first audio-only AI glasses model, equipped with open-ear speakers and microphones. That allows users to listen to music, take calls, and make voice-based AI queries.
The product weighs 43g. On a single charge, the battery lasts up to 12 hours. It comes in two designs, Clubmaster and Burbank. There are a total of 23 color and lens combinations. Prices start at USD 349, and shipping begins on October 13.
The decision to remove the camera is drawing attention as it intersects with recent debates over privacy violations surrounding AI glasses. Meta said there had been cases of attempts to cover or damage the recording indicator light on existing products, and it has applied measures that disable the camera if the light is detected as being covered or damaged. However, Meta did not say the purpose of developing this audio product was to respond to those concerns.
The Ray-Ban Meta Audio does not have photo or video recording functions, and it does not offer AI features that recognize or describe nearby objects based on a camera. Instead, it enables AI use based on voice questions and also provides translation listening features.
In that sense, whether a device can record is emerging as a functional dividing line when choosing AI glasses going forward. Of course, removing the camera does not resolve all privacy issues.
The product is equipped with microphones for calls and voice commands. Meta said it collects audio when users actively trigger functions, such as by speaking a wake word or pressing a button.
Meta unveiled the "Meta Glasses Lisa Edition." The product is a collaboration model with Blackpink's Lisa, and the photo source is Meta.
Meta did not simply release a camera-free model; it also expanded its product options by launching a third-generation model for recording. The product unveiled alongside it is the "Ray-Ban Meta 3rd Generation." The "Ray-Ban Meta 3rd Generation" is equipped with a 12-megapixel camera and supports 3K video recording. Battery life has increased by 1 hour from the previous generation to up to 9 hours. A custom button to instantly launch Meta AI has been added, and the LED indicator light that notifies people nearby while recording has been retained. Prices start at USD 449.
The significance of this announcement is that it expands AI glasses options across camera presence, design, and price range. Meta is not giving up on AI glasses with cameras, and it plans to offer more than 100 frame, color, and lens combinations across the Ray-Ban, Oakley, and Meta Glasses brands by the end of the year.
Meta also unveiled plans to connect its AI glasses with a personal AI agent called "Muse." "Muse" will support things like schedule management, and applying it to glasses is planned for the future. However, not all functions will be available at the time of the new product launch.
With this announcement, sales of the camera-equipped "Meta Glasses" lineup have begun in South Korea. By contrast, the domestic launch schedule for the newly unveiled "Ray-Ban Meta Audio" has not been announced, and the domestic launch schedule for the "Ray-Ban Meta 3rd Generation" also remains unannounced. Meta has expanded user choice by adding camera-free glasses, and as a result, the timing of when these products will be available for purchase and the range of AI functions usable in South Korea are emerging as key points of interest among local consumers.
Source: IT DAILY · Lee Jae-young
Original: https://www.itdaily.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=241840
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Source: IT DAILY
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