The live translations of Meta's smart glasses work properly, though not always.
Sometimes, he/she performed well.
Recently, I used smart glasses from Ray-Ban and Meta that surprised me by allowing me to communicate, albeit in a limited way, with a Spanish speaker about a topic I am passionate about: K-pop. This real-time translation functionality was part of an update released last month, which also included artificial intelligence features and Shazam. By activating this function, you can engage in conversations with people who speak Spanish, French, or Italian, and the glasses translate what is said directly into the user’s ears. Additionally, a transcription of the conversation can be viewed on a mobile phone.
It is relevant to mention that my interaction was part of a demonstration organized by Meta, so it is not the same as testing the glasses in a real environment. Despite being skeptical about translation technology, I observed that the glasses were capable of effectively translating basic conversations about K-pop bands. However, this efficacy decreases when the speaking pace increases or when long sentences are used, situations that are common in everyday communication.
In one of the tests, I asked my conversation partner to speak faster and in a more extensive format. Although the glasses could keep up decently, there was a slight delay in the real-time transcription. When speaking for long periods, they began to translate midway through my partner’s contribution, which was a bit confusing.
Another interesting aspect was how the glasses handled the mixing of languages, known in my familiar environment as Konglish (a fusion of Korean and English). When I tried to mimic this mixture in Spanish, the results were varied. The glasses managed brief language switches well, but as the conversation extended, the artificial intelligence sometimes repeated what had been said in English, which proved distracting.
Adapting to idioms and slang was also a challenge. For example, the Mexican phrase "no manches," which expresses surprise or disbelief, was translated literally as "no stain," which did not capture the correct meaning. This type of nuance shows how complex the art of translation can be, whether done by humans or by artificial intelligence.
On the other hand, I attempted to use the glasses to follow fragments of a movie in another language. While they worked well with clear and articulate dialogues, they struggled in scenes where characters whispered or communicated more quickly.
Overall, the glasses seem designed to facilitate simple interactions, like asking for directions or making orders at restaurants, where people are more likely to speak slowly. Although they represent an interesting advancement, I still dream of an instant and accurate translation device like Douglas Adams' Babel fish, which remains in the realm of science fiction.
