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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

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Snap announces Spectacles 3 with an updated design and a second HD camera [theverge.com]

Snap today announced Spectacles 3, a redesigned version of its augmented reality sunglasses with a sleek new design and an added HD camera to create depth perception. The glasses, which the company has positioned as a limited release, represent Snap's latest effort to build a new computing platform centered on the face. They will go on sale on Spectacles.com [spectacles.com] in November for $380.

That makes them more than twice as expensive as last year's model, which cost $150 [theverge.com]. Snap executives say the higher-end version is meant to appeal to a smaller group of "fashion-forward" creative types. It may also be designed to recoup more of its manufacturing costs for the famously money-losing product; Snapchat wrote down nearly $40 million in costs [businessinsider.com] associated with the first version of the glasses after wildly overestimating demand.

The high price of Spectacles 3 will likely limit their appeal, particularly among the high school and college-age students who make up Snapchat's core user base. A Snap spokesperson said this year's model represented a necessary investment in the platform. The company has to figure out a way to do AR computing right, the logic goes, before it can do it cheaply.

Not quite VR180 given the 1216×1216 video.

Previously: Snapchat's Spectacles: A Bad Idea in Hindsight [soylentnews.org]
Snapchat Takes a Second Shot at Wearable Camera "Spectacles" [soylentnews.org]
Snap Gives Spectacles a Face Lift to Look More Like Traditional Sunglasses [soylentnews.org]
Instagram "Influencer" Sued for $90,000 for Not Sufficiently Sporting Snapchat's Spectacles [soylentnews.org]
Snap Will Reportedly Release AR-Enabled Spectacles With Dual Cameras [soylentnews.org]

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