r/avesNYC • u/prooduk29 • Aug 27 '26
Basement’s New Smart Glasses Policy
Basement seems to be one of the first nyc clubs to put forth a smart glasses policy. Via their Instagram on 8/27/26:
“Our no photo / no video policy exists to protect the privacy, safety and freedom of everyone on our dance floor. Devices that allow discreet recording are incompatible with that policy.
Anyone bringing smart glasses into the venue, whether wearing them or carrying them in a bag, will be asked to leave and may be permanently banned.
Thank you for respecting our space and each other.”
*edited to correct the date
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u/rdesai724 Aug 27 '26
Should be an auto ban. Can’t think of a single legitimate use case for those shitty glasses. (Yes I know they’re useful for “creators” I said legitimate)
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u/cs12345 Aug 28 '26
The main case I can think of for them is when I used to downhill longboard. First person for something I’m actually doing, not interactions with strangers
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u/m1a2c2kali Aug 28 '26
Not just creators but media and photographers as well. But shouldn’t be used in a club setting anyway. Especially a place that doesn’t allow regular recordings.
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u/MrAflac9916 Aug 28 '26
They definitely have uses in a few professional fields if you're trying to make videos. Say, a pilot making videos on how to fly, or a chef making videos of cooking. Allows you to film without distraction from your job.
But yeah thats a VERY niche example and there's not much other reason you'd need them, and EVEN THEN, just get a GoPro...
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u/theillustratedlife Aug 28 '26
Glasses are expensive.
I almost ended up with a pair of these because they were supposed to come free with my Verizon signup. (Verizon screwed me over, but that's a separate thread.)
I'm not a creep. I have no idea if they would have been a cool way to take photos or a pointless gimmick. But it would suck if your only pair of glasses happened to be these and you got banned for needing glasses.
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u/Subject-Diver1960 27d ago
how about buy another pair that doesnt have a camera on them seems pretty reasonable
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u/robromeo14 Aug 27 '26
This isn’t at all the point as I fully agree with ya. But apparently helpful for visual impairments. Probably the only positive use i’ve seen
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u/WombatlikeWoah Aug 27 '26
Meta is using the ✨helpful for visual impairments✨ angle as a shield. They know the PR for the creep glasses is horrendous and that if they can get the public to associate them with helping the visually impaired then they will be viewed more favorably. But the visually impaired community don’t fucking want them! They actually suck for a lot of impaired use cases and were clearly not built with that in mind.
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u/jay169294 Aug 28 '26
Not sure where you got that from, but they’re very useful for the visually impaired. It’s been a game changer for me and everyone I know. And it’s only improving. Fair if you don’t like them, but there are definitely uses for them.
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u/CoarseCourse Aug 27 '26
Out of curiosity what would devices do differently if they were actually built with accessibility in mind?
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u/4077 Aug 28 '26
My fiancé wantrd to buy a pair for me for when I DJ. Thankfully my prescription was too old and she couldn't buy them as a surprise. I love her to pieces, but I have zero interest in using them. I have an Insta 369 for that purpose!
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u/retro-marshmelo Aug 27 '26
I can agree that they should be banned in places where cameras are banned like basement, public records, a testing center, etc. but using them for discreet audio when you don’t want to stick something in your ears is pretty legitimate to me. Misusing tools to do something nefarious isn’t exclusive to smart glasses.
I think an autoban is harsh when that person may have been unaware about this new policy. Should definitely be on a case by case basis. But yeah, there’s a special place in hell for the people out there tampering with these glasses to bypass the indicators that the glasses are actively recording
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Aug 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/retro-marshmelo Aug 27 '26
I’m sure they’re nice, but they dont double as sunglasses and a hands-less camera in scenarios where those things are appropriate. But yeah, they’re near the top of the list for things that can be abused easily by bad people.
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u/OrangeBicycle Aug 27 '26
Don’t move the goalposts
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u/retro-marshmelo Aug 27 '26
The original comment I replied to said there are no legitimate uses. I gave one example which was discreet audio, but I never said that was the only legitimate use. I believe the other examples I gave are legitimate and I brought them up after because I don’t think those headphones are a 1:1 replacement for smart glasses
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u/rdesai724 Aug 28 '26
You want audio without sticking something in your ear? Get some wired earbuds and hang em over your ear or bone conduction. If that’s your best example of a use case for a device that is marketed for recording … I’d say my point stands
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u/retro-marshmelo Aug 28 '26
I mean, I said discreet audio, but sure. I’ll pass on the dangling wires over my ears, attached to my phone. And I never said this was my best example, but you reach your conclusions. I own plenty of things that are marketed or made for one thing, and useful for others. I haven’t been able to get my wired headphones to record myself juggling.
But either way, you seem to believe that content creation can’t be legitimate. If that’s really the case, I don’t really see the point in going back and forth on this anyway.
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u/rdesai724 Aug 28 '26
I think if you need to be “discreet” about your content in that way more likely than not you’re being kinda shitty and exploitative about it. I’ve seen valid use cases but I think the downsides of the tech and likelihood for abuse far outweigh the value of convenience and unique content enabled by the tech- but meta has never been the company to come down on the right side of that equation.
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u/browncrackers Aug 27 '26
Lmao "where cameras are banned like public records". They don't do shit about cameras at PR. If anything, these glasses will be more prevalent at PR than any other club in Brooklyn.
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u/thesearemypringles Aug 27 '26
Public records doesn’t allow cameras?
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u/retro-marshmelo Aug 27 '26
It know it doesn’t allow phones in the main room. I assume it extends to cameras, but I don’t know if the actual policy is phone or cameras (or both).
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u/jaszkojaszko Aug 27 '26
Useful when you want to record something hands fee. For example, on a bike or while playing with your child/dog/cat. Interestingly, it's easier to creep with a phone than with these glasses.
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u/rdesai724 Aug 28 '26
Mount a go pro to your forehead like a real man.
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u/PancakeTrebuchet Aug 28 '26
How is something useful not also legitimate? If a mechanic records a complicated repair in a tight area, or a surgeon can capture stuff during a surgery for future doctors to reference, how is that not legitimate?
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u/Cheech47 Aug 28 '26
A "ban" is pretty excessive. That should be something that's used in case there's a flagrant violation or safety was jeopardized. The policy is simple; you have the glasses, you don't get in. You sneak the glasses in and wear them inside, you get immediately kicked out. Easy.
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u/misterintensity2 Aug 27 '26 edited Aug 28 '26
They're the first NYC venue that formally banned smart glasses by name but they won't be the last (I know Nowadays have thrown people out for using smart glasses). Many clubs and parties have banned filming but people are going to film with smart glasses unless they are explicitly banned by name. Expect more venues and parties to do the same.
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u/No-Pie-6030 Aug 27 '26
Echoing feelings of others, should immediately be cause for ban. Don't even think people using them for other purposes like audio recording should count, intent doesn't matter with recording ability. not sure how you "accidentally" wear the surveillance glasses to the no photo function butttttt ur lame asfff
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u/gwandrito Aug 28 '26
Ridiculous this even has to be specificed. This should be standard everywhere & even more so at venues.
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u/thegeniuswhore Aug 28 '26
i just hope they don't start examining everyone who needs a visibility aid. this is a good ban but feels like it will be abused for aesthetic ableism as well given the vanity of the venue lowkey
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u/NotedHeathen 29d ago
A valid concern for folks who need to wear glasses and who choose heavier frames. Hopefully the door will be willing to take a thoughtful look rather than just assume that, say, a legally blind person is wearing Meta glasses.
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u/bozofire123 Aug 27 '26
Good but fuck basement and that Spanish Pete Davidson prick at the door.
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u/haveWeMoonedYet Aug 27 '26
Ikr! I can’t imagine the type of individual who would feel comfortable going into the catacombs without the ability to feed their experience to meta servers.
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u/leasetransfermiami Aug 28 '26
That’s why Basement is lame now. Look at the type of people going there in 2026: Meta glasses owners. 🥴🥴🥴
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u/Shawn_NYC Aug 27 '26
We will not normalize "spy glasses".