On May 9, Meta launched its first bricks-and-mortar retail store in Burlingame, California. On a visit to the Meta Store, customers can try Meta’s new hardware like the Meta Quest 2 virtual reality headsets and Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses.
Meta is the new corporate name for Facebook. Meta is a multi-billion dollar company that now focuses on a futuristic immersive social experience and also builds the technology that will connect people to the metaverse. Meta is a parent company for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Meta’s products and services include Facebook Portal, Facebook Market, Occulus( Meta Quest), and now the metaverse and its products and services.
The renamed Meta Portal is on display at the store. Meta Portal TV turns your existing TV into a video conferencing device. Even if you have an older TV that isn’t a smart TV, the feature will convert an older TV into a smart one where you can get to use apps like Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, and many more streaming services. Portal is a video conferencing tablet that was released in 2018 and had a moment during the early days of the pandemic.
The metaverse is an online world where people can connect with other people virtually by playing games, working, exercising, and learning the new virtual reality. Meta had purchased Occulus back in 2014 and has since rebranded it as Meta Quest 2.
The company also collaborates with Ray-Ban to manufacture Smart Glasses called Ray-Ban Stories. According to Meta, these smart glasses, “give you a new way to capture photos and video, share your adventures and listen to music or take phone calls — so you can stay present with friends, family and the world around you.”
The demo area will allow people to test out virtual reality without necessarily purchasing the device, and also offers a 30-second video of you playing the game. Customers are introduced to the metaverse and Meta learns about its customers at play.
“Having the store here in Burlingame gives us more opportunity to experiment and keep the customer experience core to our development. What we learn here will help define our future retail strategy.”
Meta store head, Martin Gilliard
