This is the best summary I could come up with:
Over the weekend, as buyers got their first uninterrupted stretches of time with the new Meta Quest 3 headset, some started posting videos of themselves interacting with the real world instead of playing games.
Sure, it’s cool to blast low-poly baddies breaking through your walls, but isn’t it more technically impressive that Meta’s new headset lets you cook a meal or sweep your floors or enjoy a fancy coffee on a beautiful day without ever taking off the machine?
And, in the video you already saw atop this post, XR and AI booster Cix Liv went nearly full Glasshole by walking straight into a San Francisco coffee shop and placing an order, without bothering to hide the cafe’s address.
But that was a decade ago, and I argued last year that our definition of privacy, our tolerance for public photography, and our resistance to wearable technology have all changed considerably since Google first introduced its headset.
Smartphone cameras everywhere is now the norm, and small businesses often benefit from an influencer plug; Ng was fine with me naming Fiddle Fig Cafe in this story.
Then again, if I saw someone walking into a cafe with a bulbous white object atop their face with multiple camera slits, I’d just automatically assume they were recording absolutely everything.
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Meanwhile I still feel weird taking photos of inanimate objects in public spaces in case someone thinks I’m creeping on them.
I don’t worry that people will think I’m creeping on them, but I worry that they’ll find out what I’m taking a picture of and either be weirded out or laugh at me. I don’t know why that bothers me because I wouldn’t care if it actually happened.
I’m like this too. Unless it’s obvious I’m taking photos of my dog, I feel really weird about it. I like taking photos of random things I find interesting or pleasing to look at while we’re out for walks. Like a random forgotten plushie, or a nice tree, or the lake, or a rock, or a stump. Anything really. If there’s people around though, I tend to not pull my phone out because it feels invasive.
I think the most impressive thing about them is that they’re just “point and shoot” photos with my phone. I’m not a photographer, but it’s easy for me as just a regular user to take photos that are decent enough to have printed and framed. It’s even more fun to see what actual photographers, who master technique and have an eye for subjects do.
I can’t imagine living life too scared to do the things that I value. You’re in public. Sack up
It’s really not the same. One of the biggest issues with Glassholes was that it wasn’t clear they were wearing something unusual at first sight, especially from certain angles. That you didn’t know you were being recorded didn’t help, and I’m guessing that the Quest 3 isn’t secretive about that like Google Glass. But even if it is, I think everyone is going to do their best to avoid the guy walking around with that thing strapped to their head.
There’s no external indication when someone is recording the passthrough footage on the Quest 3.
It’s a Meta device, I’m sure it’s ALWAYS recording. Whether or not the used keeps the recording is another matter.
So if the person is wearing one, just assume it’s recording and facial recognition is occurring in post.
Although it’s white LED on the front of the headset instead of the expected red. It’s seems like a dumb choice by some design team going for aesthetics over functionality. And if you’re trying to surreptitiously record people there are a million easier, less obtrusive ways to do it that don’t involve strapping a giant and expensive headset to your face.
From what I remember Google glass had an indicator when it was recording, people just assumed it doesn’t and/or it’s always recording
That’s correct. The indicator light was pretty obvious.
I always found it fascinating how upset people get about the idea of a novel device recording them without permission, but it is a complete non-issue that a familiar device (the common smart phone) could also record them without permission with less of a chance of them noticing.
Yep, there were issues with it, but none of the reactions were based on actual issues and only because people just didn’t like it.
Fun fact: there were already glasses which looked more normal and were able to record you without any indication at all and so much cheaper too. Not so fun if you are on the receiving end tbf.
Quest 3 isn’t secretive about that like Google Glass.
It’s a VR headset that provides the user with a live video feed, it records 100% of the time. If the cameras stop recording, the person wearing it would be blind.
Meta has another set of glasses that have an optional recording function, along with an LED indicator as well as a check to make sure that the LED isn’t covered.
I like how they are called glassholes. It sounds like another word I like.
Someone forgot to do their focus group testing, or, even better, forgot to use their common sense.
I guess it’s time to invest in spraypaint …
