In a world seemingly overwhelmed with a demand to share content on various social media platforms, when do we cut it off? At what point are we going to say enough of being connected in every which way to those who choose to bless us with a “like,” a follow, and a comment? That time has not come yet, and Snapchat is beginning to pioneer into a new form of being socially connected.
Last month, Snapchat, rebranded as Snap Inc. and launched news of an upcoming project called Snapchat Spectacles. They finally launched this past weekend starting in Venice Beach and traveling around in a vending machine across the country. They’re a pair of glasses with a camera connected to Snapchat which will record at a 115 degree angle, mimicking our field of vision. The idea is that a user will press a button on the side of the glasses to have the camera record a 15 second interval of time. The videos, called “Memories,” are then transferred directly to the app in the “Memories” section (which has already been introduced as a cloud-based storage system for Snaps you want to keep).
This may seem to come as a surprise from the company, but it most definitely seems to be an attempt to get into the business of tech wearables. However, they seem to be jumping into the game a little too late, especially with such a limited release. So, the question lies here: is there a need or is this an attempt to push a company forward in a world of technology where maybe it doesn’t belong?
Snapchat has always been a platform that I have loved to hate. It’s a great social platform, it’s done wonders for brands and businesses, and I’ve got plenty of co-workers that use it on the daily. But, for me, it’s always been a platform that I couldn’t ever quite catch on to. It was a platform that I felt like I had to put too much effort into, despite the fact that I will post a photo to Instagram countless times before it looks just right.
So, is this the product made for me? Absolutely not. But, at the same time I feel as if I can confidently say that Snapchat Spectacles feels gimmicky and without a purpose. The concept seems interesting and new, but it doesn’t seem revolutionary, especially when everyone’s phones are already glued to their hands at all times. The product is still manually controlled, and with the increase in phone processing speeds, I feel as if I can still get my phone out and opened to Snapchat, or my Camera Roll, when I’m ready.
Back to the general point at hand, there seems to be a limit to the amount of connected technology we feel comfortable allowing into our daily lives. We have smartphones, smartwatches, wifi-connected lightbulbs, wifi-connected wall outlets, and countless others. Do we need smart glasses?
While this new innovation looks intriguing, time has yet to tell whether or not the product will actually catch on. There are definitely pros and cons to Snapchat Spectacles, however, the price will start at a low $150 which means it isn’t a serious investment like something like Google Glass which starts at a hefty $1,500.
Whether you’re an avid user of Snapchat or you’ve never even been on the platform, one can’t deny the possibilities of something like Snapchat Spectacles. It’s an innovation in technology and one of the first of it’s kind, therefore only time will tell the successes of this new wearable.
Thoughts on Snapchat Spectacles? Tell us about them! We love to hear different perspectives on innovations in tech.
