I’ve spent a lot of the final week making an attempt out Ray-ban Stories, the brand new sensible glasses made by Facebook and Ray-Ban proprietor Luxottica, and I’m nonetheless not completely positive how I really feel about them.

Here’s what I do know: I don’t hate them. I’d truly sort of like them, and I believe others will too. Yet there are lots of legitimate explanation why you’d wish to keep away from ceding one more floor of your life — a lot much less your face — to Facebook. As with every little thing Facebook, it comes all the way down to privateness and whether or not or not you belief the corporate (it doesn’t assist that Ray-Ban Stories’ privateness settings depart so much to be desired.)

But, purely as a set of “smart glasses,” they provide a fairly intriguing take a look at what non-AR “smart glasses” might be.

Ray-Ban Stories

I’ve spent fairly a little bit of time with the primary three variations of Snapchat’s Spectacles, and Facebook has undoubtedly benefited from watching Snap experiment with sun shades during the last 5 years. Even the title, Ray-Ban Stories, looks like some sort of subtweet at Evan Spiegel.

But whereas Spectacles at all times felt somewhat conspicuous and toy-like, these largely appear and feel like, properly, a pair of Ray-Bans. Yes, they’re a bit heavier, and the cameras are troublesome to disregard; however from a distance, they might simply go as another pair of WayFarers. That’s an excellent factor for Facebook. Ray-Bans may not be for everybody, however they’re definitely extra interesting — and influencer-friendly — than something with a Facebook emblem (there’s Facebook branding on the packaging).

Besides the look, one main distinction between Ray-Ban Stories and Spectacles is that the Ray-Ban glasses even have audio capabilities inbuilt. Each arm has a tiny speaker so you’ll be able to stream music or podcasts, whereas having the ability to hear your environment. Much just like the Bose Frames, it basically turns the glasses into bluetooth headphones (there are additionally onboard mics so you’ll be able to choose up calls). Though the audio performance is extra of a secondary function, to date it’s been my favourite a part of carrying the glasses.

The open-ear audio system means you get way more ambient sound than you do with say, AirPods Pro in transparency mode, so going for a stroll whereas listening to music feels fairly pure. But I’ve additionally been pleasantly shocked with the audio high quality, which is significantly better than I anticipated.

Music sounds wealthy, and calls and podcasts are clear — no less than if you pay attention at about mid-range quantity. The audio high quality degrades considerably in the event you crank the amount to full blast, however that additionally kills the entire letting-ambient-noise-in factor. They aren’t the identical as a good pair of earbuds, however I’d don’t have any hesitation about carrying these instead of my regular AirPods for a fast run or stroll across the park (they aren’t water-proof so I’d in all probability depart them at house on longer runs when sweat may very well be extra of a problem).

The cameras (and one more Facebook app)

But the principle motive why Facebook and Luxottica need you to spend $300+ is for the cameras. Facebook says it crammed plenty of processing energy into the 5-megapixel cameras to assist them punch above their weight and it largely works. The movies I shot had good stabilization even after I was strolling or in a shifting automotive. The pictures had been significantly much less spectacular, however satisfactory if all you’re on the lookout for is one thing to share to your Instagram Story.

Unsurprisingly, they appeared to shoot higher in vibrant mild — the pictures I took in direct solar had been way more clear than these I took on a barely extra overcast day. In barely extra shady situations, every little thing seemed a bit darkish and underexposed. But these are sun shades, in any case, so it is sensible they’d be optimized for sunnier days.

Viewing and sharing your pictures and movies requires a separate app, known as Facebook View. The app, which requires a Facebook login, lets you view your photographs and make some primary edits earlier than downloading them to your cellphone or sharing to a different app.

For now, the app feels a bit missed in contrast with the glasses. There are some barebones modifying controls for adjusting the crop, brightness, saturation and some different components. The cameras do not truly shoot 3D pictures, however you need to use the app so as to add some depth results that add a little bit of movement to the shot, just like how one can share “3D photo” in News Feed. There’s additionally an choice to make a video collage, set to a preset soundtrack, with as much as 10 clips at a time.

While I appreciated the flexibility to do a little bit of fine-tuning, the results are restricted and so tacky I briefly puzzled if Facebook and Luxottica had been hoping to market the glasses to Boomers slightly than Gen Z. But, purely as an app for dumping pictures, Facebook View will get the job finished — and you’ll at all times edit your photographs in a separate app.

My different main grievance was with the voice instructions, which lets you shoot pictures and movies hands-free. It labored tremendous the few occasions I attempted it, however I largely steered away from the function. I really feel goofy sufficient speaking to any digital assistant outdoors of my house, however there’s one thing deeply uncomfortable about saying “Hey Facebook, take a photo,” in public.

Privacy

Which brings us to the elephant within the room: privateness. Facebook’s official line is that Ray-Ban tales had been designed with “privacy in mind” however everyone knows the corporate has a fairly dismal observe report with regards to privateness.

Here’s what you could learn about Ray-Ban Stories and privateness:

There aren’t any adverts within the Facebook View app, and Facebook says it received’t use the contents of your pictures and movies for promoting functions. But, as is so typically the case with Facebook, merely utilizing the product can inform the corporate’s potential to “personalize” your expertise, in accordance with a disclaimer if you first arrange the Facebook View app. “We use this data to improve and personalize your experience with facebook products,” it says. You can choose out of this information sharing, nevertheless it’s on by default.

And bear in mind these hated voice instructions? Facebook additionally shops these transcripts by default, in accordance with the app. The transcripts and “related data” are saved and accessible by “trained reviewers.” And, as with different voice-activated assistants, there’ll inevitably be events when one thing is captured even when the wake phrase (on this case “hey Facebook) isn’t uttered. I’ve solely deliberately used voice instructions twice, and but there are already 4 transcripts saved within the app.

Thankfully, you’ll be able to choose out of each storing transcripts and sharing “additional” information with fb. The app additionally helps you to delete transcripts of voice instructions it’s captured, however each are sadly enabled by default.

If any of that makes you uneasy, then you definitely’ll possible wish to keep away from not simply Ray-Ban Stories however the eventual AR glasses that come subsequent. There’s additionally the value. At a beginning worth of $299, they’re significantly dearer than a regular pair of WayFarers, although they’re nonetheless lower than Ray-Ban’s priciest frames. (And practically $100 lower than the beginning worth of Snapchat’s third-gen Spectacles.)

Whether or not you’re prepared to make that funding largely will depend on how you are feeling about Facebook and what you might be hoping to get out of a pair of “smart glasses.” At finest, they really feel like a greater, extra polished model of Snapchat’s Spectacles. It’s nonetheless a novelty, however with respectable audio, sensible glasses are beginning to really feel much more helpful. At worst, the glasses are one more reminder of Facebook’s dominance.