What Is the Difference Between Facebook Ray-Ban Stories, Snap Spectacles, & Amazon Echo Frames Smartglasses?
The rise of Facebook's collaboration with Ray-Ban to launch
the Stories smart glasses has finally put an exclamation mark on a new category
of smart glasses: augmented reality wearables.
And while the Facebook device isn't particularly innovative
in terms of features already explored by other wearables, it stands out in some
important ways. But now that there are so many smart glasses options available
to the mass consumer, how do you choose the right pair of smart glasses? I'm glad
you asked.
• Don't miss it: Snap presents the Gucci Edition of
Spectacles 3, a film shot through Spectacles 3 by Children's Movie director
Harmony Korine
While a few smart glasses have popped up, like North's
Focals (now owned by Google) and Vuzix Blade (too bulky for casual users,
perfect for business), just to name a couple, when it comes to really popular
smartwatch options. points, there are only three lightweight portable wireless
devices worth considering. For now, the main options are Snap's Spectacles 3
($380), Amazon's Echo Frames ($249.99), and now Facebook's Ray-Ban Stories
($299). (It should also be noted that we're going to be focusing on Snap
Spectacles 3 instead of the latest version of AR, simply because the latest
experimental version of Snap wearables isn't available to mainstream
consumers.)
When deciding which of the three main options to invest your
time and money in, it's important to try and figure out how you'll use them and
what's maximum important to you fashionable terms of features. So let's see in
what way they compare across the board.
strong glasses 3.
PHOTO
Echo Frames from Amazon are immediately excluded in this
category, since the device does not have cameras like in Spectacles 3 and
Stories. Snap Spectacles 3 captures photos at 1728 x 1728 pixels and video at
1216 x 1216 pixels at 60 frames per second. Facebook's Ray-Ban Stories captures
photos at 2592 x 1944 pixels and videos at 1184 x 1184 pixels at 30 frames per
second.
In practice, I've found that photos and videos from Snap's
Spectacles are generally better. In addition, Spectacles 3 has an additional
feature that allows you to add AR-style 3D effects to your video footage after
rendering through the Snapchat app. In the Facebook View app, you have the
ability to add Instagram-style effects, but nothing immersive or 3D (yet). So
if photography is your thing, I would still prefer Snap Spectacles 3 over
Facebook's Ray-Ban Stories.
AUDIO
The audio category is one of the most important for smart
glasses because since none of these wearables offer augmented reality
capabilities, audio is sort of a virtual half step in tat direction. Trendy
this case, Snap's Spectacles 3, which can record audio while recording video,
falls by the wayside due to the lack of other audio features contained in the
alternatives. Both Amazon's Echo Frames and Facebook's Ray-Ban Sections suggestion
a hands-free mode that lets you give voice commands to activate various
features.
In this sense, Echo Frames stands out from the rest because
it has a full-fledged virtual assistant (Alexa) that can execute a long list of
commands activated by your voice. By comparison, Facebook's Ray-Ban Stories
only lets you use verbal commands to take photos or videos (but I think this
feature will expand pretty quickly). Plus, both the Echo Frames and Stories
allow you to take calls and listen to music and podcasts through the device,
making them a pretty decent replacement for a pair of headphones if you're okay
with the inherent leakage of open speakers. In this category, Amazon's Echo
Frames win (but Stories comes in second).
SOFTWARE
It's no surprise that Spectacles 3 and Stories were the
winners in the software category, as both are backed by companies whose
livelihood depends on making the mobile app as simple and convenient as
possible. Alternatively, while e-commerce giant Amazon has mastered the art of
making online shopping easier, it still has room to develop user-friendly
mobile apps that aren't directly focused on shopping.
Between shows and stories, the winner is simple: Snapchat. Spur-of-the-moment
has been working on its Spectacles product for almost six years, so it makes
sense that the company has ironed out the rough edges of its hardware and software
integration. Also