The great thing about these devices is that they are stationary and always on.
Facebook’s
new gadgets, Portal
and Portal Plus, are meant to bring people closer together.
So
we — Mike Isaac and Farhad Manjoo, two technology writers for The
New York Times — took the $199 and $349 devices for a test run over
the last week to see if they could make us feel more connected to
each other.
We
both installed the Portal, which starts shipping on Thursday, in our
homes (our bedrooms, to be exact). The devices are video-calling
machines that people can use to talk through a screen to other
Facebook users. They have a 12-megapixel camera with high-definition
video and artificial intelligence software; the camera follows people
about as they move around.
The
Portal has raised some privacy concerns, especially since Facebook
has been scrutinized for how much information it already has on
users.
Were
we worried about what these always-on devices might collect on us?
Here’s how it played out.
Mike:
Why, hello, Farhad! It’s been a while since we last shared a column
together.
Farhad:
I’ve had the time of my life not talking to you. Then last week, I
learned I’d be getting Facebook’s new video-calling
machine so you could call me up whenever you felt like it. Oh, boy.
Do
you know how The Times has been running ads showing all the hazards
reporters have to go through to get important stories? I think
agreeing to install a Facebook-designed machine that puts me on speed
dial for Mike Isaac should get me a starring role in one of those
spots.
Mike:
You should be so lucky.
So
I have to say, waking up next to you in my bedroom was, uh, quite an
experience. I put my Portal Plus on the desk that sits bedside. The
screen saver cycled through my photo albums on Facebook
and Instagram — and also occasionally your face.
Farhad:
I’m guessing you loved this thing.
Mike:
Er, not exactly.
What
was your experience like initially? The unboxing process was funny to
me. It felt like an Apple design moment; every piece of plastic and
“pull here” tab was carefully placed, with the intentionality
that Apple usually saves for its device packaging, but with a very
Facebook-y twist on things. There was an iconic Facebook thumb on my
power cord holder, for example.... Read
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