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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

#91

Post by atom-morgan »

Osmium wrote: post #40
pram wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

I've actually gotten compliments on my Spectacles from people who didn't even know they were made by Snap.

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

#92

Post by pavlov »

vm wrote: post #37
pavlov wrote: 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) sel…

I think your issue 1 is actually this way by design. Spectacles are meant for recording without worrying too much about how the content is coming out. The idea is to let you concentrate on living the moment rather than how to frame it. That's how I interpreted it, anyway.

The upload takes place in the background, so usually it would be completed by the time you're done with whatever activity and go into the app.

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

#93

Post by jjoonathan »

vm wrote: post #37
pavlov wrote: 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) sel…

There's no UX that bluetooth can't ruin.

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

#94

Post by sturmen »

mrfusion wrote: 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?)

I own Spectacles. Yes, you can retrieve the videos and do whatever you want with them, without ever sharing them via Snapchat. Here's the workflow:

1. Take video

2. Enable BT and WiFi on your smartphone

3. Open Snapchat on your smartphone

4. Wait for what seems like forever for the phone to find the Spectacles. Charging them in the case seems to help, as does charging the phone?

5. Wait for the phone to grab the low res version.

6. Wait for the phone to grab the "HD" version. (Note: this may (?) be automatic on iOS. I own an LG V20.)

7. Navigate through Snapchat's terrible interface to the video you want to save.

8. Save to your phone. You're done!

They come out as 800x800 videos that are circular, so the true resolution is (-21.4% vs square).

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

#95

Post by Spivak »

jjoonathan wrote: post #93
vm wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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) sel…

There's no UX that bluetooth can't ruin.

And yet there's really no replacement. I mean if MS uses Bluetooth for their surface pens, when they completely control the hardware at both ends, then there's really no hope for getting rid of it.

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

#96

Post by Spivak »

rosstex wrote: post #85
pavlov wrote: 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…

Spectacles, the Juicero of photography.

You at least have to give them points for actually trying something different.

Juicero was just an overengineered scam.

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

#97

Post by Balgair »

swiftting wrote: post #22
pavlov wrote: 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?

I'm happy that people will be using these instead of holding up an iPad during concerts to record something they'll never watch again. Less intrusive.

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

#98

Post by JavaOffScript »

ben174 wrote: post #70
dmix wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also went to the website https://www.spectacles.com and I had no idea what they were until I googled other news articles about it. - Extremely vague besides "push a button to record video". - No mention of battery power, length of charge, app integration, quality of video, etc, etc. - It seems to be only targeted at women? There's no pictures of men wearing them. - What do the sides of the glasses look like? All pi…

I think the mysteriousness is part of the marketing. Makes them seem more obscure and thus desirable to some.

That's part of snapchat's brand, they make all their shit unintuitive, obscure, hard to discover and use. It's supposed to make it so that you feel hip and in the know when you finally discover how to make that mustache appear on your face or make text float in the background of your video.

But of course that doesn't seem to transfer that well to selling hardware.

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

#99

Post by atomical »

jjoonathan wrote: post #93
vm wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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) sel…

There's no UX that bluetooth can't ruin.

I'm very impressed with Garmin's bluetooth implementation on the Forerunner series.

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

#100

Post by 0xCMP »

otalp wrote: post #58
Splendor wrote: post #15

42K is low but the product appeals to a very small segment of consumers: Snapchat users, who don't wear prescription eyeglasses, who happen to have a face shape complimented by the single size/style of Spectacles.

Also they were very hard to get if you weren't in the few places where they were sold.

It's selling on Amazon now.
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