Cicret Bracelet DEBUNK

This seems like a good time to mention Captain Disillusion. A filmmaker and video editor, Alan Melikdjanian, started a YouTube channel back in 2007. He debunks viral videos and adverts, whilst performing in character as the rather surreal "Captain Disillision". Don't let the bizarre performance scare you off - his production values are simply outstanding, especially considering he does this all pretty-much singlehandedly, and has done so with hardly any recognition for the past 10 years. I think his channel only hit 100k subscribers last year, so it looks like he might finally be getting some well-deserved recognition. Here's a few links to some of his best stuff. You'll probably be thinking "WTF is this?" when you first start watching, but trust me and stick with it: - [link] - ▶ this video - [link]

in “A scientist who spots fake videos” · View on HN

Is that real or CGI? I looked at it for a long time and I didn't find any smoking gun (perhaps too much shacking, it looks like fake shacking). I've seen too many videos of Captain Disillusion, in particular ▶ this video

in “Humane launches $699 Ai Pin” · View on HN

Ah yes because light rays from lasers are fundamentally better than other light rays. Handheld projectors won't catch on until the next breakthrough in physics ▶ this video love with your heart, use your head for everything else

in “Humane AI – Pico Laser Projection – AI Twist on an Old Scam (2023)” · View on HN

The "laser ink display" looks a bit like the totally bunk display tech of the Cicret Bracelet "product" that VFX videomaker Captain Disillusion did a comprehensive takedown of a couple of years ago ▶ this video . While it looks like there are a few videos of apparent actual demos, I haven't seen one yet where the device (and more importantly, the recording camera's settings) are controlled by an impartial reviewer, and I'm extremely sceptical that this is usable in the real world. There's a demo by the founder where one of the inputs is to tilt your palm up, and even in the demo the projection struggles to compete with the indoor lights, nevermind the sun [link] . The pitch of this seems to be "no more distracting screens, and no need to download and manage lots of apps and services". Except there is a (very poor) screen, it's your hand. And you're limited to just one service and set of apps, the one that comes with the device. It's all well and good saying that the AI can do everything you want, but the real world (sadly) has copyright restrictions and content licensing agreements which an out-of-the-box service by a legit company will have to abide by. If the song I want to listen to isn't available on whatever music service this product is partnered with, could I transfer music files from my computer to this device? There's a lot of use cases like this where you very quickly start to want an actual screen, and actual methods of input more precise and domain-specific than conver

in “Humane AI Pin” · View on HN

“Humane is using sensory data from a wearable device to perform smartphone activities like writing messages, playing music, or opening Twitter via a projection on a person’s left hand.” Sounds like the “Cicret Bracelet” - see Captain Disillusion for how well that works: ▶ this video

in “Founded by Apple vets, startup Humane has raised $241M with no customers” · View on HN

You mean the Cicret? That was bullshit. ▶ this video Or the more realistic kind that project on a wall in a dark room?

in “Pebble CEO explains why he sold to Fitbit” · View on HN