Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jul 1
Meta Caps Smart Glasses Feature at 3 Hours Unless Users Pay $19.99
Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jul 1

Meta Caps Smart Glasses Feature at 3 Hours Unless Users Pay $19.99

1 articles · Updated · The Verge · Jul 1

Summary

  • Meta said its smart glasses' Conversation Focus will soon be limited to 3 hours a month unless users buy the $19.99 Meta One Premium plan; subscribers would get 15 hours monthly.
  • Conversation Focus amplifies a speaker's voice in noisy settings, and the report says it kept working even with Wi-Fi, cellular and internet access turned off, indicating the feature runs on-device rather than on Meta's servers.
  • That makes the new cap unusual for a feature tied to hardware customers already own, while Meta describes it as a "rate limit" rather than a requirement to subscribe to use the glasses.
  • Meta has been under pressure to fund its AI push, recently cutting about 10% of its workforce—roughly 8,000 jobs—and lowering prices on three AI-glasses models by $80 after dropping Ray-Ban branding.

Insights

Despite record profits, why is Meta charging for a local AI feature that costs nothing to run?
With software paywalls on your hardware, do you ever truly own your smart glasses?