Snapchat Rebrands as Snap Inc., Introduces New Video-Recording Sunglasses

Social media app Snapchat updated something other than its filters: the company has slimmed down its name to the monosyllabic “Snap,” though the app will still be called Snapchat.

The newly rebranded Snap Inc. has also introduced a new product called “Spectacles,” which are video-recording sunglasses. The glasses can record up to 10 seconds of video by pressing a button on the frames, and the video is automatically uploaded to Snapchat via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

“Imagine one of your favorite memories. What if you could go back and see that memory the way you experienced it?” Snap Inc. asks in their announcement. “That’s why we built Spectacles.”

No release date has been announced for Spectacles, but the glasses will retail at $130, with three different colors to choose from. Perhaps Snap’s video-recording glasses will fare better than Google’s hugely hyped and hugely flopped Google Glass.

It seems that Snap is trying to stay relevant and noteworthy, given its recent increase in competition from Instagram since their debut of “Instagram Stories.”

The glasses will offer a unique first-person video capture that’s certainly not as easy to do with a handheld device. See the hype video for Snap’s glasses below, and find Snap Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel’s full announcement on his company’s name change beneath that.

Today we are changing the name of our company to Snap Inc.

It has been five years since Bobby and I started working on Picaboo, the little app that became Snapchat – and we’ve been so lucky to build an incredible team that has continued to expand upon Snapchat and create products like Stories, Memories, Lenses, and so much more!

When we were just getting started it made sense to name our company Snapchat Inc., because Snapchat was our only product! Now that we are developing other products, like Spectacles, we need a name that goes beyond just one product – but doesn’t lose the familiarity and fun of our team and brand.

We decided to drop the “chat” and go with Snap Inc!

Changing our name also has another benefit: when you search for our products it will be easier to find relevant product information rather than boring company information or financial analysis. You can search Snapchat or Spectacles for the fun stuff and leave Snap Inc. for the Wall Street crowd 🙂

We hope that this change will improve your experience with Snapchat and Spectacles, and create a structure that allows us to continue making great new products for you and your friends!

Evan