I am wondering if anyone is still using Seleste? It has been something like a month and a half since the beta app has been updated, and given the notification about no hardware updates, I have to wonder if it's still going at all?
I got a pare when they first came out but they weren't for me so I ended up getting a refund.
I never even used the app as it wasn't on the app store and I didn't get my email to join the test flight beta.
What did the hardware update thing say? That they were going to stop making the glasses?
I hope people are getting refunds. Honestly, as cool as these ideas are, you've got to be very very certain when you start something like this. I don't know if they were the first AI powered smart glasses for the blind but they were the first company I heard about.
The guy seemed genuine and he treated me right. I can't fault is customer service, but he was very early in on a very hard problem.
I'm sorry it didn't work out for them, but I am not at all surprised. It takes a lot to make a product like AI-powered smart glasses for the blind work. There's a new one this month, good look to them, but I don't expect them to be the one either.
This looked like it was off to a good start. However, when it comes to “new tech” like this, the better support you have, the better off the product will be…
Which is why the Meta Ray-Bans seem to be going strong right now. Now, I am not saying they are the best of the best, but for what they offer, they are not bad at all, but hey, what do I know? Perhaps there is still some life left in the Seleste product. 🙂✌️
We aren't waiting for blind tech - it is general use, we are just benefiting in a very special way. OK, it won't be exactly what we need at first - the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses are funky, but they have gotten better quickly.
It was a fantastic initiative, I so wanted it to work. I've been using it since May, but I couldn't justify the monthly $50. I came in with the understanding that I will be testing a beta and helping it improve. But ultimately I just had so many issues and it didn't contribute to my life that it didn't make sense.
I'm sure the guy had good intentions but his website wasn't laid out very accessibly, he shipped me a unit and then wanted me to ship another to another person in the UK, I didn't, and I just wasn't a fan of the design at all.
I thought they would be like the trex, I believe they're called, the aftershocks headphones? But no.
I just looked at their website again and their last video was in March. It could be the fact I've not visited their website in a long time but they do seam to be marketing the glasses to visually impaired users a bit more than completely blind ones now and honestly, that makes perfect sense to me.
However, I doubt people will keep buying them as soon as they read that they're not planning on making any hardwhere updates any time soon. That news really does tell me a couple of things; 1. The company will probably end up shutting down next year and 2. They didn't meat their sails numbers.
The guy was nice enough but only had 2 people working on these. Now I think about it, it's not surprising it didn't work out, that's such a small number of people, i'm honestly surprised it got off of the ground.
I got them in January and I'm still using them. They still sometimes have reliability issues but definitely much less than before. I just put them on almost every time I leave the house and use them to get descriptions of my environment. It isn't always useful for anything but I just like hearing the information that I would've missed before. Also, about a month ago they added a video calling feature with their own volunteers, although I had some issues with it when I tried it.
They also sent their users an email about that about a month ago. I might end up getting the Meta glasses soon and see how they compare. But I really wish someone would make a good-quality, well-maintained pair of glasses with an open-source protocol or SDK so anyone could integrate with them, or Meta would open their glasses up more. I'm glad they partnered with Be My Eyes and AIRA, but I think you still can't make your own custom prompts or use another model like GPT4O when developers eventually get access to its live video mode, or use Be My AI which has been significantly fine-tuned to be more helpful to the blind, or use OKO with the glasses to detect traffic lights instead of holding your phone out.
There's an interview on the double tap podcast with the people from Be My Eyes, and they're working with Meta to get Be My AI implemented eventually. I'll try and find a link if you want.
There is also, "talk", about Meta designing a future pair of the Ray-Bans to have its own OS in it, bypassing any need for a smartphone. That is probably a ways off though.
If you do decide on a pair of Metas, might I recommend the Skyler frames?
They are so much more comfortable and stylish than the Headliner or Wayfarer.
I returned them one or two months after getting them. Great idea. I would like something like the Ally app that I am currently beta testing in a pair of glasses. I would like a less hallucinations though. If anyone is testing this beta app you'll know how cool it is to have a conversation where you're able to ask info on something you are looking at and it be processed just in a few seconds. This is what I expect these glasses were hoping to achieve and just took a little bit too long and was too buggy
Comments
Nope.
I got a pare when they first came out but they weren't for me so I ended up getting a refund.
I never even used the app as it wasn't on the app store and I didn't get my email to join the test flight beta.
What did the hardware update thing say? That they were going to stop making the glasses?
I hope people are getting refunds. Honestly, as cool as these ideas are, you've got to be very very certain when you start something like this. I don't know if they were the first AI powered smart glasses for the blind but they were the first company I heard about.
Sounds like…
This sounds like another failed Kickstarter. Correct me if I am wrong? 🙁
It wasn't...but...it has probably failed
The guy seemed genuine and he treated me right. I can't fault is customer service, but he was very early in on a very hard problem.
I'm sorry it didn't work out for them, but I am not at all surprised. It takes a lot to make a product like AI-powered smart glasses for the blind work. There's a new one this month, good look to them, but I don't expect them to be the one either.
That’s too bad
This looked like it was off to a good start. However, when it comes to “new tech” like this, the better support you have, the better off the product will be…
Which is why the Meta Ray-Bans seem to be going strong right now. Now, I am not saying they are the best of the best, but for what they offer, they are not bad at all, but hey, what do I know? Perhaps there is still some life left in the Seleste product. 🙂✌️
This is the very reason why I have been so hot on AI
We aren't waiting for blind tech - it is general use, we are just benefiting in a very special way. OK, it won't be exactly what we need at first - the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses are funky, but they have gotten better quickly.
The 'look and read aloud' seems new? Good to.
Look and read allowed? Whats…
Look and read allowed? Whats this?
It seems to work quite well
I think it started with the last update. Somone on here or Masto was talking about it, so I tried it.
Look and read
the look and read in meta glasses works reasonably well with shorter texts. The prompt is exactly that. Look and read.
Okay, still no proper ocr…
Okay, still no proper ocr though.
Hopefully Be My Eyes will resolve this in the future.
Just sent it back
It was a fantastic initiative, I so wanted it to work. I've been using it since May, but I couldn't justify the monthly $50. I came in with the understanding that I will be testing a beta and helping it improve. But ultimately I just had so many issues and it didn't contribute to my life that it didn't make sense.
Like everyone else, i'm not surprised.
I'm sure the guy had good intentions but his website wasn't laid out very accessibly, he shipped me a unit and then wanted me to ship another to another person in the UK, I didn't, and I just wasn't a fan of the design at all.
I thought they would be like the trex, I believe they're called, the aftershocks headphones? But no.
I just looked at their website again and their last video was in March. It could be the fact I've not visited their website in a long time but they do seam to be marketing the glasses to visually impaired users a bit more than completely blind ones now and honestly, that makes perfect sense to me.
However, I doubt people will keep buying them as soon as they read that they're not planning on making any hardwhere updates any time soon. That news really does tell me a couple of things; 1. The company will probably end up shutting down next year and 2. They didn't meat their sails numbers.
The guy was nice enough but only had 2 people working on these. Now I think about it, it's not surprising it didn't work out, that's such a small number of people, i'm honestly surprised it got off of the ground.
I am
I got them in January and I'm still using them. They still sometimes have reliability issues but definitely much less than before. I just put them on almost every time I leave the house and use them to get descriptions of my environment. It isn't always useful for anything but I just like hearing the information that I would've missed before. Also, about a month ago they added a video calling feature with their own volunteers, although I had some issues with it when I tried it.
Nice.
@emassey They're not planning on updating the hardware, according to their own website, so be prepared for that.
@Brad
They also sent their users an email about that about a month ago. I might end up getting the Meta glasses soon and see how they compare. But I really wish someone would make a good-quality, well-maintained pair of glasses with an open-source protocol or SDK so anyone could integrate with them, or Meta would open their glasses up more. I'm glad they partnered with Be My Eyes and AIRA, but I think you still can't make your own custom prompts or use another model like GPT4O when developers eventually get access to its live video mode, or use Be My AI which has been significantly fine-tuned to be more helpful to the blind, or use OKO with the glasses to detect traffic lights instead of holding your phone out.
Be My AI
There's an interview on the double tap podcast with the people from Be My Eyes, and they're working with Meta to get Be My AI implemented eventually. I'll try and find a link if you want.
The Rumor Mill
There is also, "talk", about Meta designing a future pair of the Ray-Bans to have its own OS in it, bypassing any need for a smartphone. That is probably a ways off though.
If you do decide on a pair of Metas, might I recommend the Skyler frames?
They are so much more comfortable and stylish than the Headliner or Wayfarer.
Just my 2 cents. 😉
OH ok.
I honestly forgot all about them after realising they weren't for me but I'm glad they're being honest about not updating the hardware.
nope
I returned them one or two months after getting them. Great idea. I would like something like the Ally app that I am currently beta testing in a pair of glasses. I would like a less hallucinations though. If anyone is testing this beta app you'll know how cool it is to have a conversation where you're able to ask info on something you are looking at and it be processed just in a few seconds. This is what I expect these glasses were hoping to achieve and just took a little bit too long and was too buggy