Ray-Ban Stories test, fun and almost intelligent

We all know the reputation of Facebook, just like the often questionable choices of Mark Zuckerberg. Also, the association with Ray-Ban for glasses equipped with a camera is not what we expected the most from the social network. Still, it was at the end of last year in the United States that Facebook and Ray-Ban released Stories, connected glasses with cameras and speakers.

As a result, when you discover the Ray-Ban Stories, you can’t help but think of a mix between Snap’s Spectacles and Bose’s Frames. While the Spectacles only offered one camera, the RayBan Stories offer two, yes two cameras, on either side of the glasses. But the strength of Ray-Ban compared to all similar products such as Snap Spectacles, Bose Frames or Razer Anzu is the design of the glasses. On our test model, we had the iconic Italian brand WayFarer.

And it’s not the only one available, several models are available and for each of the models, Ray-Ban offers several types of lens and even the possibility of having corrective lenses. None of the direct competitors offer such a plethora of offers and there really is a choice. And if the branches are slightly thicker, for the rest, it’s exactly the same iconic style and we love it. Moreover, we asked the question to many people and if we had not shown that they were Stories, no one had made the difference with the classic models.

Design

Of course, when purchased, the box is much larger than a simple pair of glasses at Ray-Ban. And for good reason, the storage locker is huge. It will be used to recharge the Stories but also to offer three additional recharges. It’s still better than the Bose Frames or Razer Anzu which required us to recharge them via a USB socket with a proprietary cable. Moreover, no proprietary cable, a simple USB-C cable is enough but we are dependent on the locker.

As mentioned above, the temples and the frame itself, for our Wayfarer model, are slightly larger than the basic WayFarer. Indeed, at the level of the frame, we find the two cameras and also the magnetic connector to recharge the glasses in its locker. And when the branches, they are thicker because they integrate the speakers and the battery.

Well, I’ve been testing these for more than a week now. #RayBanStories and the only conclusion I come to is that it’s a perverse thing and luckily it’s wide angle pic.twitter.com/Hxa7qL5rGg

— Anh | #StopAsianHate (@AnhPhanFr) March 26, 2022

The Wayfarer design is timeless and luckily for us, Stories can be used without worrying about cameras or speakers, even if it doesn’t make too much sense. Also, despite all the additional embedded technologies, the Ray-Ban Stories Wayfarer remain light. We did not feel any discomfort on a daily basis compared to conventional glasses. During the first days, we found them slightly tighter, the time they were probably done. The finish is of course plastic but at the level of what Ray-Ban offers so it’s all good.

Technology

Apart from the successful design, thank you Ray-Ban, the Stories have two cameras of 5 Megapixels each, no less than three microphones and 4GB of internal memory. On the right branch is a physical button that will take photos and / or videos and a sensitive area for multimedia controls. Inside, at the hinge of the left branch, there is a small switch that allows you to turn off the glasses and pair them with your smartphone.

On the other hand, we would have liked to have a pair certified IP6x. We don’t know about you but in our case, it often happens that we can have to use goggles in a swimming pool or even in the sea at the beach. We won’t do it with the RayBan Stories so be careful. Finally, we note that the Ray-Ban Stories offer up to 6 hours of autonomy, everything will depend on the uses, but on our side, we were able to last a whole day between shooting and listening to audio content. .

Sound

And speaking of audio content, we recall the two speakers of the Ray-Ban Stories, one on each branch. As with the Bose Frames, it’s not bone conduction but just speakers that project sound directly into your ears. The sound itself is more than adequate but does not compete with headphones, even the worst ones. We found that it lacked the power to really listen to music in noisy environments like the subway for example.

On the other hand, in a calm environment like a park for example, it allowed us to listen to music while being alert to what was around us. We particularly enjoyed listening to podcasts. This type of product is perfect for this use. Similarly, with three microphones, we had no particular problems during our telephone exchanges. We didn’t even have any cuts so it’s pretty good. However, beware of strong winds.

And that’s not all since the Ray-Ban Stories also offer an audio assistant, Facebook Assistant and even the language of Molière is supported. The catch is that it’s pretty limited. We can take photos or videos but that’s all. No jokes or other except via the assistant of his smartphone.

Photos and videos

As we said above, there are two cameras of 5 Megapixels each and we will be direct, we are in the presence of the equivalent of an entry-level smartphone in terms of quality. We are far from premium smartphones. HDR is almost non-existent, videos lack detail and film in squares by default. So, as soon as we want to share them on social networks in Portrait mode, we will crop in this square image. Facebook and Ray-Ban can do better, we’re sure.

Due to its positioning, the Ray-Ban Stories impose use in PoV (Point of View) mode for shooting and to have practiced this kind of shots with GoPro, we know that you have to point the GoPro downwards . As a result, with these glasses where the cameras point straight ahead, you will have to be careful to frame a little downwards by lowering your head at the risk of framing the sky more often than your subject.

But.

To our great surprise, even if the quality was not there for Geeks like us. We found that was more than enough for stories to TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and even Snapchat. The best thing is to see for yourself the quality it gives:

To give you an idea of ​​what the RayBan Stories look like! Here’s a bit of a day and so yes, it can be fun for story junkies #RayBanStories pic.twitter.com/TQUUGRJ8Hi

— Anh | #StopAsianHate (@AnhPhanFr) April 15, 2022

With no less than 4GB of internal memory, the Ray-Ban Stories can store up to 30 30-second videos or 500 photos. Note that since the release in Europe, RayBan has released new firmware to take 60-second videos. And each time you use the View application on your smartphone, the Ray-Ban Stories will automatically download the photos and videos to the smartphone or rather the application itself. With the fairly frequent use of Facebook View to view its content, we never managed to saturate the memory of the glasses.

And there, inevitably, the question of privacy arises. And Facebook has thought of almost everything. Indeed, each time we take a video or a photo, a small LED will light up at the level of the cameras. It’s bright enough to see but it’s much quieter than Snap’s Spectacles LEDs. Similarly, you will hear a photo shutter noise. On a daily basis and having used the glasses in different scenarios, no one has ever captured anything in real life! Note that the content is stored either in the memory of his glasses, or in the View application on his smartphone, nothing goes on the Facebook servers unless it is an initiative from the user.

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