Facebook is reportedly working on dedicated video chat hardware, per a new report by Bloomberg[1]. The device is said to be the inaugural major product from Facebook’s hardware-focused Building 8 product development lab, and will include a notebook-sized display. It’s intended to make video chat participants separated geographically feel like they’re together in the same space, the report claims.
Bloomberg’s report also claims Building 8 is developing a separate smart speaker product, similar to Amazon’s Echo and Google Home, which would use a voice assistant developed by the social network provider. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg developed his own home voice assistant as part of a project resulting from his annual resolutions, which in 2016 focused on building a smart home companion similar to Jarvis from Iron Man.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of a smart speaker in development at Facebook – a report last week sourced from DigiTimes suggested that the company’s supply chain sources indicated a smart speaker with an integrated 15-inch display[2] was on track for a potential first quarter 2018 launch.
Based on the details of this new report, it sounds like the smart speaker and device with a 15-inch display may actually be two separate products. The 15-inch screen would fit with this fresh suggestion of a device with a laptop-sized screen tailored for video chat, at least.
Bloomberg also says the video chat gadget will include a wide-angle camera, built-in microphones and speakers, with artificial intelligence tech used to improve its photographic (offering zoom and lock features on people’s faces) and audio performance. In testing, it’s being supported by a thin stand that supports the display, which could reportedly be between 13 and 15-inches in size. FB is said to...
Read more from our friends at TechCrunch