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Video-enabled Snapchat glasses drop into Berlin for popup event

DPA/The Local
DPA/The Local - [email protected]
Video-enabled Snapchat glasses drop into Berlin for popup event
A man tries out the Spectacles in Berlin. Photo: DPA

The company behind Snapchat launched their camera-enabled Spectacles in Berlin on Friday through a bright yellow, popup vending machine.

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Snapchat unveiled their new “Spectacles” on Friday in Berlin, as they dropped their vending machine in a beach volleyball park in the capital city.

The Spectacles cost €149.99 and could be bought in three different colours - red, black, and blue. Photos and videos can be recorded by the wearer, and are then sent via Wifi or Bluetooth to the owner’s phone.

The location of the Snapbot´s appearance is only revealed online 24 hours before its arrival, but there are already three long-term machines in California.

Snapchat's machine is designed to look like a face with a large, single eye and accepts card payment before dispensing the spectacles through its mouth.

The sunglasses-dispensers also popped up in other major cities around Europe on Friday, including London and Paris.

The vending machines were also sent to Venice, and to the harbour of Barcelona.

This new advertising drive in Europe has come after the success of the trial vending machine on Venice Beach in Los Angeles, California.

While the price might seem expensive, it hasn’t yet put people off buying the new accessory, with Snap reporting having sold 60,000 of the glasses in the last quarter.

They also said that over 5 million snaps had been taken with the glasses so far.

 
Though the sun was shining, only a few people arrived at the Berlin machine on Friday morning to buy the device and enjoy the pleasant weather.

Self-proclaimed “gadget fan” Florian Seeber was one of those who purchased a pair of the high-tech specs.

Despite having never heard of the device before, Seeber parted with almost €150 to buy a pair of the high-tech glasses on the machine’s opening day.

“I found out about them from a blog this morning. I had never heard of them before," the 31-year-old remarked as he took his new Spectacles away.

"I had wanted to buy the Google Glass glasses, but they were too expensive for me.”

Reporting and writing by Alexandra Ball and Julius Haswell.

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