Humane’s AI Pin didn’t review well, but the company is still pushing forward. Today, it sent out an email with a link to a YouTube Short that glorifies the experience of letting life happen instead of actively trying to capture it on camera. It instead wants users to rely on the AI Pin and its lackluster hardware.
Reviewers described a tiny product that “is so thoroughly unfinished and so totally broken in so many unacceptable ways” and “the worst product” some ever reviewed. It’s a product with high promises that managed to deliver and virtually none of them. Even if the AI Pin did live up to what it promised, there are other issues: last week the company issued an alert to owners, asking them to “immediately” stop using the charging case due to a fire risk.
Humane’s pitch for the pin relies partially on the promise of AI and partially on the idea of disconnecting from direct input into some day-to-day activities. It’s the latter that Humane is pushing now, even if its hardware can’t keep up with the concept (a recurring theme).
“At Humane, presence is what we build. Hear firsthand from a dad how we offer new ways to make memories and bring balance to our relationship with technology. Made with well-being in mind, so you never miss a moment,” the company claims and points to the video below.
The father’s words are lovely but are contrasted with low-resolution, shaky, nearly unwatchable footage. The Humane AI Pin is equipped with an ultra-wide 13-megapixel camera that can be operated by motion sensors or by telling it to press the shutter. It’s been described as “pleasant enough” in bright light but also been derided as not even as good as what can be shot with a Nokia E7 smartphone from 2012.
What is most clear in Humane’s latest advertisement is how poorly the camera handles vibration and movement. Every second is interrupted by distracting shakes to where it’s difficult to see or enjoy what is happening on screen. The clips don’t last very long either, which may have been an editing choice because the footage is so poor but also might have been the result of the camera’s pitiful record limits — just 15 seconds at a time.
Humane appears to be searching for something about its AI Pin that is worth touting in advertisements because, as mentioned, the initial pitch of an AI-assisted life has fallen flat. This latest attempt isn’t likely to win anyone over either. When the company is trying to sell the $700 pin as a way to capture everyday life and the best footage it could find to use in an ad looks like the above, it’s hard — if not impossible — to see the value even when accompanied by the words of a loving father.