Google Clips AI-Powered Camera Has Been Discontinued

The Daydream View VR headset isn't the only product Google has discontinued this week. The company is no longer selling its AI-powered Google Clips, a small camera designed to leverage modern technology in order to automatically capture and preserve life's most memorable moments. The product page for the device is still featured on the Google Store website, but it now redirects users to other available devices.

Put simply, Google Clips was a small square camera designed to automatically record memorable moments during your day. This ability relied on artificial intelligence, the idea being that by the time something interesting happens, it'll likely already be over by the time you pull out your phone to record it.

Google Clips was unlike any other camera consumers were likely to encounter, one with the appeal of promising a hands-free experience (for the most part). Users could browse through the 7-second clips captured by the camera — they were assembled from individually captured still images — to see what Google's algorithm thought was interesting.

Ultimately, there were some issues with the device. For starters, the entire philosophy of the device required it to be worn or carried around frequently, otherwise it wouldn't have the opportunity to capture spontaneous moments. Many people report feeling uncomfortable interacting with others while a camera is present to watch the moment.

Beyond that, many users and official reviews found that the camera didn't function quite as well as they'd hoped it would, resulting in many clips that weren't terribly interesting, ones completely devoid of audio. The utility of what was essentially a GIF-capturing device didn't appeal to many; years later, the product is officially discontinued.