The new AirPods that have been teased with cameras built in are now suspended. Not just delayed, but development has been suspended on these AirPods models, according to Kosutami, who is quite famous for collecting prototypes of Apple devices.
Of course, this isn’t confirmed, and likely never will be, since it was an unreleased product; it is interesting to see it halted.
Why was Apple adding cameras anyway? We don’t know for sure, but it does sound like they were being added to give them the power to be your personal assistant as well. Using them for various Visual Intelligence features. You could ask Siri to name the plant you’re looking at, or whether you can eat a particular ingredient with another or not. Because the cameras were supposed to be angled, they’d be able to see in front of you, despite being in your ears.
These could also end up being very useful for those with vision impairment, helping people identify objects, navigate around a city, and more. Apple has already made the AirPods useful for those that are deaf or hard of hearing by making them hearing aids.
The Android Headlines Take
Given the recent outrage over Meta’s Glasses (which aren’t new, by the way), it’s probably a good thing that Apple decided to suspend the AirPods with cameras. People are very antsy about having wearable cameras, and AirPods with cameras would be even more inconspicuous than the Meta Glasses, which have cameras right on your face.
Though it is true that more people trust Apple than Meta. Still, suspending this product was probably the right move. However, suspending it doesn’t mean it’s cancelled. It could just be shelved for a few years, with work resuming later on. When some component prices drop again, like DRAM.
AirPods are already the most popular headphones on the planet, and adding cameras to them means that millions, if not billions, of people would have cameras on their ears.
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