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Amazon publishes a pair of smart glasses, Echo Frames, which cost $ 180. Echo Frames has an integrated Alexa voice assistant, which you can talk about anywhere, anytime.
- Unlike similar devices such as Snap glasses or Google's infamous $ 1,500 smart glasses, Echo Frames do not have cameras to take pictures or record videos; Amazon sees this as a good point for reasons of confidentiality.
- But some people still have concerns about the possibility of using Alexa's recording capabilities on the streets. "Introducing these devices to people's homes is one thing, but encouraging people to wear hearing aids all day is a step forward," said a privacy advocate at Business Insider.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
Amazon is the last big tech company to have decided that what consumers really need is a smartphone, and privacy advocates are not convinced.
At an event on Wednesday, the company unveiled its first pair of smart glasses, Echo Frames.
The echo frames cost $ 180 and are compatible with Alexa, which means the wearer can tell a command to the Amazon voice assistant and the glasses will hear it.
Carriers can ask Alexa to make a call, set reminders on their phone, or read a podcast, among other things.
Amazon said users would be able to hear Alexa's responses via four built-in micro-speakers in frames and directed directly to their ears to limit listening. In addition, the microphone can be turned off, he said.
Read more: Smart glasses powered by Alexa to a serious competitor AirPods: these are the 8 new gadgets craziest and coolest that were unveiled Wednesday by Amazon
Unlike Snap's Shows or Google's famous $ 1,500 smart glasses, released in 2013 and which caused negative reactions in terms of privacy protection, Echo Frames does not have any cameras to take pictures or record videos.
Amazon sees this as a good thing for privacy reasons, and that's also why smart glasses weigh a little more than an ounce.
However, privacy advocates worry that Alexa's recording capabilities will end up on the street.
Alexa's Alexa household devices have already been under scrutiny.
Some users have found that their personal conversations have been recorded and passed on to friends by mistake. Bloomberg reported in April that Amazon workers had listened to recordings and made fun of them online. In response, Amazon said that it would introduce a new feature on all of its Alexa-enabled devices, which would allow users to delete records.
The British privacy activist, Big Brother Watch, said the number of privacy breaches of Amazon with Alexa had set a poor precedent for Echo executives.
"Amazon has a horrendous record of privacy and publishes countless" smart "gadgets continually monitoring the privacy of their owners," said Silkie Carlo, group director, in a statement to Business Insider. "Using these devices for people's homes is one thing, but encouraging people to wear hearing aids all day is a step closer."
Carlo did not mean if Amazon's glasses could conflict with the European Union's privacy law, which states that any company that does deal with European citizens must obtain the consent of its users to use their data. "I do not think we can respond until the details and policies are published," she said. "However, it is fair to describe it as a concern."
Amazon did not immediately respond to Business Insider's comment request.
Other critics claim that unlike Google Glass, Cloks could well take off, which means that there could be a group of porters walking with permanent microphones on their person.
"Amazon's huge surveillance infrastructure and its much less intrusive design will make Echo Frames the real * nightmare * of privacy that we fear Google Glass will become," a Twitter the user has written.
She added, "and $ 180 ?! Forget it, these things could be everywhere."
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