Meta Portal No More
Meta is shutting down production of the Portal smart displays amid company layoffs and other project cancellations, according to a Reuters report. The Portal and two unreleased smartwatches are victims of Meta’s decision to narrow its hardware pursuits.
Portal Closed
Meta made the decision to end Portal production in June, starting the process with no fanfare. All versions of both the consumer and enterprise Portal hardware, including the mobile version that the company had made a big deal about as recently as August. The same goes for the two-camera smartwatch code-named Milan, projected to launch next year for $350. With Meta reducing its workforce by about 11,000, the hardware projects are apparently no longer viable. Meta is instead focusing on its central products like Facebook and Instagram, keeping development centered on the metaverse and its virtual reality efforts. Those don’t preclude hardware like the new Meta Quest Pro headset, but the decision does leave fans of the Portal somewhat out of options. Meta hasn’t said if or when support for the Portal will end, it may just end up an odd but functional reminder of Meta’s experiments in the last few years, like the Spotify Car Thing.
The Portal had notably played with using “Hey Facebook” as a wake word for the built-in voice assistant before removing the option last year. The phrase apparently made people only think of the Facebook app, just as the company rebranded to Meta. “Hey Portal” has remained as an option for a wake word.
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