Snap’s Spectacles are going on a summer tour across Europe. Starting today, anyone in Europe can buy a pair of sunglasses on Snap’s website or in a vending machine. With this launch, Spectacles are available outside of the U.S. for the first time.
European Spectacles are exactly the same as the ones that launched in September 2016 in the U.S. While the excitement around Spectacles has been a bit more quiet in the U.S., Snap has been slow when it comes to rolling out its first hardware product.
At first, it was only available in weirdly-shaped vending machines. It was a great marketing tool, but it also meant that it was hard to get your hands on a pair. Since February, anyone has been able to buy a pair on Spectacles.com.
In Europe, Snap is launching Spectacles simultaneously on its website and in a bunch of vending machines. Customers in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden and the U.K. can now buy a pair for €149.99 or £129.99.
But Snap also wants to celebrate the launch in real life. You’ll be able to spot vending machines in London, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona and Venice today.
Those vending machines won’t stay around for long as the plan is to move them around the U.K., France, Germany, Spain and Italy this summer. So don’t be surprised if you see a big bright yellow box next to your favorite beach.
Spectacles are basically sunglasses with a tiny camera. You press a button, and it records 10 to 30 seconds of video. You can then find the footage in the Snapchat app on your phone, making it easy to share those videos with your Snapchat friends or keep them in the Memories section.
