Kmart appears to have sold out of its $89 Anko-branded smart glasses, which feature video recording technology that critics fear could be used to film people without their consent.
As first reported by The Guardian, the Kmart website shows the smart glasses from the company’s in-house brand are out of stock online.
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The glasses first made headlines last week, drawing attention for their relatively cheap price compared to smart glasses from the likes of Meta.
Both devices are part of a growing product category, which promises users the ability to capture video and audio without pulling out a smartphone or camera.
The glasses also boast AI capability, with the former using the HeyCyan assistant software found across other low-cost smart glasses. The Meta glasses use Meta’s own AI system.
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While Amazon and Temu offer smart glasses with similar features to the Anko glasses at a similar price, the Kmart offering may be the most accessible version released in Australia to date, with the sell-out suggesting local appetite for the contentious product offering.
Some digital policy experts and privacy advocates fear smart glasses allow wearers to breach the privacy of others by making it harder for bystanders to know when they are being filmed.
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Meta smart glasses feature an LED alerting onlookers when the camera is on, and the company has pledged to crack down on wearers tampering with that feature.
The Anko glasses also feature a light indicating when the camera is on, but it is unclear if they have features to disable recording if the light has been removed or deactivated.
In a statement provided to SmartCompany last week, a spokesperson for Kmart Group, which oversees Target and Kmart, said the Anko glasses are “part of an established and increasingly mainstream category of wearable technology, with similar products available globally from major technology and eyewear brands”.
Wearers should exercise discretion when using the product, they added.
“As with any device capable of recording images, we expect customers to use the product responsibly, respectfully and in accordance with applicable laws and community expectations around privacy.”