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Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

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Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#31
post #6

Based on my brief exposure, Spectacles is a very polished product. Everything about it had an aura of breezy, forward-moving fun that is usually absent from tech: the purchase experience at a super-cute vending machine that displays a rendering of the glasses on your face; the yellow carrying case that doubles as extra battery for the glasses; the effortless installation experience; even the round video that invites…

The whole Spectacles concept is gimmicky, including the vending machine aspect, so it doesn't really matter how well executed the 'experience' was. They need to allocate their capital to people who have better ideas.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#34
post #7

Can you use these without uploading to Snapchat? I wouldn't mind getting one just for making videos. (Or is there a better glasses product for that?)

Yes, you can get the video files and don't need to upload them to snapchat.

Viewing the videos on Snapchat you rotate your phone depending on whether you want a horizontal or vertical frame, which is actually pretty cool. When saved outside of Snap the videos save to some standard video format as a circle within a rectangular frame, which makes them kinda useless.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#35
post #6

Based on my brief exposure, Spectacles is a very polished product. Everything about it had an aura of breezy, forward-moving fun that is usually absent from tech: the purchase experience at a super-cute vending machine that displays a rendering of the glasses on your face; the yellow carrying case that doubles as extra battery for the glasses; the effortless installation experience; even the round video that invites…

Yes polished however what are the TRUE use cases for them ? What problem are they solving for the average consumer to gain wide adoption?

Frictionless sharing of your life with the people who matter to you.

We've continuously reduced the friction it takes to share experiences with one another, spectacles is another step in that direction.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#36
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't it easier to get a POV shot by using glasses though? It definitely makes easier and quicker to get shots that you wouldn't normally be able to get. E.g. you see someone doing some cool bike trick on the street. If you take out your phone in an attempt to capture the moment, you might miss it, while if you're using the Spectacles, you might not.

I get it, but for what? I mean, it's such a niche thing. I have to wear these ugly glasses that do ONE thing. Or just use my phone. People have their phones out CONSTANTLY. They spend more time in hands than they do pockets.

Yea but we're moving towards a world where our phones will stay in our pockets and we'll interact with it through glasses, watches, wearables, contacts, real world surfaces. If you think we're always connected now, wait for hypereality to start taking hold.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#37
post #6

Based on my brief exposure, Spectacles is a very polished product. Everything about it had an aura of breezy, forward-moving fun that is usually absent from tech: the purchase experience at a super-cute vending machine that displays a rendering of the glasses on your face; the yellow carrying case that doubles as extra battery for the glasses; the effortless installation experience; even the round video that invites…

They're doomed by the slow UX for uploading: 1) record w/o really knowing how the content is coming out (it's like stepping back into the Kodak age after using an iPhone for 10 years), 2) open Snap app, 3) reconnect the Bluetooth for 1-2 min because the connection is crap from the glasses to my phone, 4) upload all the videos from my glasses which takes another 1-2 min, 5) select specific video snips to share, 6) select people to share / upload to story, etc.

Seemed to take 5 min when I did it. Enough to kill the moment. Sharp contrast to how fast Snap is on iOS.

Plus the glasses are uncomfortable and have large blind spots, so I can't wear them all the time (i.e. not good for driving)

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#38
post #2

Literally, the only people I saw talking about those stupid glasses were people trying to shill the IPO online.

I wasn't even aware they existed until I saw this thread.

I don't understand why companies feel they need to start selling average household products, but with cameras, microphones, wifi, and bluetooth. Maybe I'm just paranoid but I don't even like my laptop having a camera.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#39

I'm very surprised how feminine this design is. It has strong overtures towards 50's cat-eye frames and looks exclusively marketed to women. I just ran through all the media/PR stuff I could find for this and can't find any official photos of a man wearing them. I wonder if they would have better luck also selling a male-fashion oriented model. This isn't a hypothetical as I would probably pick these up for ease of v…

Influencer demos skew highly female, so I can't say I'm surprised -- Snap isn't selling to the total market so much as trying to get traction through high-influence users. It's a strategy that requires time, patience, and careful execution, but has the potential to normalize something that Google rather famously failed to do so (and potentially poisoned the concept) with Glass.

Re: Snap sold fewer than 42K Spectacles, down 35% in Q2

#40
post #26
post #6

Based on my brief exposure, Spectacles is a very polished product. Everything about it had an aura of breezy, forward-moving fun that is usually absent from tech: the purchase experience at a super-cute vending machine that displays a rendering of the glasses on your face; the yellow carrying case that doubles as extra battery for the glasses; the effortless installation experience; even the round video that invites…

I think the aesthetic of the glasses is flawed, not the technology. They look really goofy. They should have gone with a standard design like Wayfarers, and not something few people could realistically look good in. If they're aiming for mass appeal anyway.

> They look really goofy. They should have gone with a standard design like Wayfarers

I'm not sure about that... if you have a technology that won't quite fit in a 'standard' design, but you try and force it anyway, it'll look bad regardless. Better to embrace the goofiness and make something a little fun instead.

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