Facebook announces new models
Mark Zuckerberg has presented new portal devices. (Screenshot: Facebook / t3n.de)
Facebook has introduced two new smart displays. Portal + and Portal Go are designed to facilitate connections with colleagues and family.
Facebook brings new models its portal smart displays. Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced this on a Facebook Live. The Smart Speaker Portal Go 2 and the new Portal + model should be available at the end of the month. Zuckerberg did not specify which regions this applies to.
The revised Portal Go has a ten-inch display. In battery operation, the speaker with an integrated handle allows freedom of movement, emphasized Zuckerberg. This is supported by the 12 megapixel wide-angle camera, which automatically tracks the person speaking and keeps them in focus.
At 14 inches, the new Portal + has a slightly larger display, but overall a more compact design. The HD display can also be swiveled, which provides additional flexibility.
The Portal Go costs $ 199 and the Portal + $ 349. Both can be pre-ordered now. Shipping will start on October 19th.
Zuckerberg emphasized on Facebook Live that the portal devices are intended for both private use in the family and professional use in the office.
The devices also get new features for professional use. As of December, all touch-based portal devices will support Microsoft Teams.
A new offering called Portal for Business is aimed at small and medium-sized businesses that can create professional Facebook accounts for their employees. This new type of account is to be offered for numerous Facebook business products from next year. Portal for Business is currently only available as a beta version in the USA.
Towards the end of the live stream, Zuckerberg dared to take a look at his vision of a metaverse in which people are digitally connected. He called the portal devices “Gateways into the Metaverse”. There will be further announcements on this subject at the end of the month.
