Pixel Buds could be the latest in a line of gadgets that we are told will cause the world to stop spinning on its axis unless we use them - but may ultimately just trigger a collective shrug of the shoulders.
The other view is that any new tech always needs to be tested and shaped in its early stages, so rather than slap down each new move, we should let those with money to burn have their fun, and wait for the real thing.
Over-engineered by a company that doesn’t seem to understand how humans interact, Google Pixel Buds are a perfect example of Silicon Valley arrogance.
The demo of PBs drew rave reviews from the technology press, with the dream of in-ear real-time translation goes back at least as far as Douglas Adams’s Babel Fish, a little alien that fits in a human ear, feeds on brain waves and, miraculously, excretes translations into the ear canal.
Yet this is not how human beings interact with each other. It is telling that this product comes from the same people who brought us Google Glass.