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Meta and Snap battle for your face

The Vergecast

Hosted by David Pierce

31m
Transcript

Original podcast

Summary

Written by a model from the transcript; not yet reviewed.

The Vergecast discusses the latest announcements in smart glasses and wearable technology from Meta and Snap, alongside news about Google satellites, Nintendo lawsuits, and OpenAI agents. The hosts examine Meta's new Ray-Ban Gen 3 glasses, an audio-only version aimed at addressing surveillance concerns, and a new pair of mixed reality VR glasses with a computing puck. They also analyze Snap's expensive augmented reality specs and discuss whether consumers actually want cameras and computers on their faces.

The guests and hosts debate the utility versus the severe privacy implications of facial cameras and AI agents that operate automatically. They explain how Meta's new devices attempt to bypass backlash through camera-free alternatives while still pushing forward with spatial computing and multimodal assistance. Listeners get specific insights into device pricing, field-of-view limitations, battery setups, and the growing social friction around wearable technology.

  • Meta introduced the Ray-Ban Gen 3 glasses with adjustable temple tips, six microphones, and one extra hour of battery life. 12:03
  • The new Ray-Ban Meta Audio Glasses feature no camera and thinner temple bands designed to look less like computer glasses. 12:22
  • Meta's upcoming VR glasses cost $1,299, launch in the spring, and use a separate computing puck with a fan to stay lightweight. 16:45
  • Snap Specs are priced at $2,195 and feature standalone augmented reality displays in both lenses with a 51-degree field of view. 25:11

Chapters

  1. 0:00
    Amazon Prime Sponsorship Intro

    Hosts introduce the show and Amazon Prime sponsorship.

  2. 1:00
    Meta Announces New Smart Glasses

    David Amel previews Meta’s new Ray‑Ban and VR glasses.

  3. 5:38
    Meta Connect Press Preview

    Hosts discuss Meta Connect and the hands‑on experience with new glasses.

  4. 10:41
    Meta Ray‑Ban Gen 3 Features

    Jay and V explain the hardware differences between camera and audio‑only Ray‑Ban glasses.

  5. 16:45
    Meta VR Glasses Overview

    Jay walks through Meta’s new VR glasses, their specs, and demo highlights.

  6. 25:11
    Snap Specs Release and Critique

    Hosts review Snap’s new specs, noting cost, design, and usability concerns.

  7. 28:55
    Privacy and Adoption Concerns

    Discussion on privacy issues, user backlash, and the future of smart glasses.

  8. 32:25
    Closing Remarks and Sign‑Off

    Hosts wrap up the episode, thank listeners, and provide contact info.

Highlights

  • 7:20

    Muse AI agent grocery demostory

    The guest explains testing the Muse AI agent on glasses for a food demo, where it answered slowly and gave incorrect macronutrient information about a box of protein bars.

  • 10:53

    Ray-Ban Gen 3 hardware changesdata

    The guest describes the new Gen 3 glasses features, including aviator styles, adjustable temple tips taken from optic glasses, six microphones instead of five, and one hour of extra battery.

  • 14:12

    FDA cleared hearing enhancementinsight

    The hosts discuss the FDA-cleared hearing aid feature coming to the audio glasses as a $150 one-time upfront fee.

  • 16:45

    Meta VR glasses form factorstrategy

    The guest explains that Meta's new $1,299 mixed reality glasses pack all compute, battery, and storage into a belt-clip puck to keep the glasses lightweight.

  • 25:09

    Privacy concerns of wearable camerasdebate

    The host and guest debate whether consumers actually want or asked for cameras on their faces, highlighting the pervasive privacy hurdles and social ickiness of hidden recording.

  • 25:29

    Snap Specs field of viewinsight

    The guest evaluates Snap's $2,195 augmented reality specs, noting that the 51-degree field of view is too small for the digital content, causing the illusion to break.

Quotes

  • “Meta announced a boatload of new glasses last night.”
    David Pierce · 1:09
  • “The way we were told is that they're working with Disney and Industrial Light and Magic to make these and they'll be like handcrafted to be timed with each film.”
    Unnamed speaker · 19:41
  • “They have augmented reality displays in both lenses. They're huge, they bend your ears.”
    David Pierce · 25:21
  • “I think it's going to be on any of them. So a lot of this stuff is they're not gatekeeping things to the audio glasses only.”
    Unnamed speaker · 15:13
  • Amazon Prime 0:00–0:31
  • Amex Corporate 0:35–0:52
  • Amazon Prime 3:08–3:31
  • Square 4:21–5:32
  • The Verge 32:33–32:39
  • GEICO 32:49–33:15
  • Apple Watch 33:20–33:47

About this episode

Meta and Snap both want to get on your face. The Verge's Victoria Song and Jay Peters tried out all the new hardware: Specs, audio-only Ray Bans, and Meta VR. Today, they join guest host David Imel to talk about how these new smart glasses feel, both physically and emotionally. Further reading: Meta’s next VR device isn’t a headset — it’s glasses Meta ditches the camera on its newest smart glasses I wore Snap’s $2,200 smart glasses Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

0:00
31:21

5,992 words · 7 speakers

Speaker names marked are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

Topics

  • Meta
  • Nintendo
  • Snap
  • OpenAI
  • Prime Big Deal Days
  • Google
  • SpaceX
  • Ray-Ban Metas

Page updated · transcript and summary are machine-generated