Chapter 801: Privacy Concerns
Soon, other players who had pre-ordered the Matrix Glasses also received them one after another.
A flood of unboxing and review videos quickly appeared online, all very detailed, covering the Matrix Glasses' packaging, appearance, texture, craftsmanship, software features, bundled games...
Every aspect, almost everything was reviewed.
Many players who were on the fence, or those who wanted to buy but hadn't managed to snag a pair, gained a solid understanding of the Matrix Glasses through these review videos and player feedback.
"To put it simply, if you're deciding on smart glasses right now, it's basically a choice between the Matrix Glasses and the HiSE Smart Glasses, right? None of the others are worth buying."
"But I've seen a few models that are even cheaper than the Matrix Youth Edition."
"Those are basically digital junk. What are you planning to do with them? The Matrix Youth Edition is already the lowest acceptable spec level. If something has even fewer features than that... then I'd advise you to just wait until the technology becomes widespread and smart glasses are a dime a dozen before buying..."
"Budget-conscious people should just go for the Matrix Youth Edition or Standard Edition."
"What's the difference between the Youth Edition and the Standard Edition?"
"Apparently, the Youth Edition basically has no special effects when playing 'Three Kingdoms Kill'..."
"That's it?"
"Uh, the Standard Edition has higher specs, is more comfortable to wear, runs programs smoother, and you have to consider that if some fun MR games come out later, the Youth Edition definitely won't be able to run them."
"Rich folks should just go straight for the HiSE Glasses. I think the camera and live-streaming features are essential. Smart glasses without recording capability are as ridiculous as a phone without a camera..."
"Hey, but I remember Zou Zhuo was live-streaming with the Matrix Glasses before, right?"
"Apparently, Zou Zhuo's was a developer version. The consumer version can't record or live-stream. The developer version isn't for sale yet, and I don't know how to get one."
"I don't understand Chen Mo and Lehui's mysterious move here. It's like releasing a phone and then deliberately removing the camera? Baffling..."
After the reviews, players were generally quite satisfied with the Matrix Glasses, but one point of contention was that they didn't offer a camera function.
For many players who hadn't adjusted their thinking, this lack of a camera was as baffling as a phone without a camera. Why would they deliberately remove a feature that could easily be added?
Some players offered their own explanations: "Maybe it's to reduce features and save costs? Honestly, the camera function isn't that necessary. Besides some streamers, how many times would you actually use it? You're not going to use it as a dashcam, are you?"
Opinions varied, but a certain number of people did buy the HiSE Glasses specifically for the camera function.
These people eagerly tried out the HiSE Glasses' camera and live-streaming features. Outdoor streamers, in particular, felt they had discovered an incredible new tool.
Outdoor streamers on the Mo Yu live-streaming platform, as long as they had some spare cash, basically bought the HiSE Smart Glasses immediately, ready to ride the wave of popularity. Their streams covered all sorts of content: some went up mountains, some went to sea, some entered nightclubs, some went to anime conventions...
The HiSE Smart Glasses' camera gave viewers a strong sense of immersion. With the help of the gyroscope, the image shake was kept within tolerable limits, making it quite popular.
The clarity and network speed were also decent. While not matching some high-definition cameras, it was slightly better than a phone's clarity.
Especially when streamers went to nightclubs and conventions to look at girls, attractive women with big chests and long legs helped them gain a huge surge in popularity.
Many people lamented, "If only the Matrix Glasses had a camera, they wouldn't be in such a passive position! Actually, a lot of streamers wanted to support domestic products, but not having a camera is really awkward!"
Some streamers, when entering public places like nightclubs or bars, noticed women giving them a wide berth, or even turning and walking away upon seeing them. However, these women didn't make it too obvious, and the venues were noisy, so even the streamers themselves didn't notice, let alone the viewers.
...
The Matrix Glasses also released an overseas version, but the response was minimal.
Overseas, HiSE was developing very well. Upon release, it sparked a buying frenzy. The relevant person in charge of the HiSE Smart Glasses was very pleased, calling the HiSE Glasses a "smart device that will change the future."
This was actually normal. Thunder Entertainment was quite famous overseas, but it was still a game company. Lehui, as a domestic phone brand, had its international influence mostly concentrated in less developed regions. In Europe and America, especially the high-end market, it had little competitiveness.
It wasn't that Lehui's products were bad, but tech products also depend on brand competitiveness.
However, just as the HiSE Smart Glasses were enjoying great success, an unexpected incident occurred for its users.
A well-known tech media outlet, TechCrunch, published an article questioning whether "HiSE Smart Glasses invade privacy."
"The HiSE Smart Glasses' camera is located directly in front of the device and can be activated at any time by thought, without even an LED light to indicate whether the camera is taking photos or recording. This is extremely concerning. Imagine, in the near future, millions of users all wearing HiSE Smart Glasses. It would be like everyone having a drone, capable of capturing and recording everything happening around them at any time. What kind of situation would that be?"
After this tech media outlet raised the issue, many people commented under the article, strongly agreeing.
"Yes, I'm now very worried about seeing people wearing HiSE Glasses because I have no idea if they're capturing my face."
"In public places, I'll give these people a wide berth. This is a hundred times worse than secretly filming with a phone."
"I feel like everyone wearing HiSE Smart Glasses has some ulterior motive. Oh, I know that sounds exaggerated, but... that's my genuine feeling. Seeing that camera makes me very uncomfortable."
Quite a few people agreed with the article's viewpoint. In a very short time, the article became trending news.
After all, it was news related to "smart glasses," one of the hottest topics at the time, easily attracting widespread attention.
Many domestic players were also discussing it. Some thought it was no big deal—weren't all those outdoor streamers using them? But many others agreed with the viewpoint. From a real-world perspective, encountering someone wearing HiSE Glasses did indeed evoke that feeling.
Very off-putting...