Memoto is more than a wearable device; it’s a hardware and software service for remembering every moment. To get access to a photographic memory, you’ll need not only a small camera but also a strong, smart and secure backend system.
We’re building Memoto’s backend to handle millions of photos for millions of users. You should be able to upload your photos from your camera in a fast and secure way. You should be able to rely on the photos staying on the servers, out of reach to anyone but you. And, most importantly, you should be able to access and make use of your large photo stream.
“Memoto’s Lifelogging Experience” – the camera, the cloud service and the apps have been beautifully described in this infograph (also below). The subscription fee for the organization and storage of your photo stream will be $9 (+ tax where applicable) per month, starting year 2. In exchange, you get access to “the brain and the heart” of Memoto:
- You can let Memoto’s algorithm organize your photos
- You can view and share photos and moments via Memoto’s apps
- You get enough storage for normal everyday use of the Memoto camera
We hope you find this deal as smart as we do. And remember, if you order a Memoto camera today, the full subscription fee for the whole first year is included. If you haven’t already, order your Memoto camera here.
All the best, Memoto Team via Oskar
Answers to some common questions below.
– Can I upload other data and store in the Memoto cloud? Why not?
No. Memoto is not a storage service.
– Can I delete my photos? Will this also delete my metadata?
Yes and yes.
– What about all that compounding data? For example, will 3 years of data cost 3x as much as the first year?
No, the monthly cost is a flat fee.
-What if I choose not to renew the subscription (or wish to opt out of it altogether)?
You have the option to store all photos (with the exception of GPS location) on your local hard drive and managing them manually in a standard photo catalogue.
Memoto Lifelogging Experience Infograph
42 Comments
Can I upload photos from other devices (say, my smartphone or the Autographer) or is the cloud service only for photos taken with Memoto?
Hi Micke, The cloud service can only be used in conjunction with Memoto photos and data, it’s not meant to be a storage service. Best, SM
Does this mean that if I don’t pay the second year, I will only be able to transfer the photos from the Memoto to my computer, but not use the app and get them processed into moments?
Yes, having your photos available on your phone requires cloud storage which not even Memoto can provide for free at this scale. You will have ample time (2 months minimum) to download your photos after canceling your subscription.
/SM
Just to note: we will not have any geo-location data in the photos unless we use the service.
I don’t think I get it: how can it not have geo-location data? If the camera doesn’t put some sort of information about the location in the images, how can the service know? Or is it inserted in some proprietary format?
Im just a buyer, but that’s what i read before. I presume it is proprietary.. And probably the key ‘lock in’ to hoping people subscribe.
Hi Micke,
The Memoto camera first captures raw signal data from GPS satellites using the GPS sensor. After that, the Memoto Lifelogging Cloud calculates and processes this raw data into usable geo-location information.
This was a necessary design decision, because GPS processing is very intensive in processing power – and very draining for battery life (consider how a smartphone’s battery drains much faster when GPS is turned on).
The Memoto camera is designed with one primary function in mind: to take photos constantly in order to work as a photographic memory, while being small enough never to be in the way in your everyday life. With today’s battery technology, we’ve managed to optimize the battery life of the device to run for two days of use before needing to be recharged. A big part of this feat is that we put a lot of the “intelligence” of the system in the Memoto Cloud and the smartphone apps rather than the Memoto camera itself.
Best /NJ
I see. Does this mean that @wdowell:disqus is right, and that you will not have GPS tags on your photos if you choose not to subscribe to Memotos service year 2?
That’s right. /NJ
Oh wow. That’s a huge deal changer. Can you get a refund for your camera should you want it?
Hi Micke, of course you can get a refund, just let us know via email.
Best regards,
Martin
Hi Memoto,
I’m a Kickstarter backer and I’m all for the cloud and the ‘momentification’ of my photos, but in the interest of having an open ecosystem/platform and transparency, I think Memoto should strongly consider that whatever software utility or process is used by those that do not want to subscribe the cloud service should also help process the GPS data into the EXIF data for the photos. As others have mentioned, keeping this feature “locked in” to those that pay to subscribe seems to be arbitrarily using the technical limitation as financial leverage to sell the cloud service.
I just noticed that even the *time* each photo was taken is not included either!? That’s just not cool, Memoto!
“You have the option to store all photos (without the meta data of GPS position, time etc.) on your local hard drive…”
ouch. I didn’t realise that data/time wasnt on there.. that IS bad.. This is going to have the complete and utter opposite intention of keeping people locked in to the subscription as this is just ridiculous. I thought the geoloc stuff was all about a technical limitation of the “power” the gps used.. The same clearly cannot be said about the time/date stamp..
Given that it is impossible to believe the cloud service will last forever and ever (nothing in this fast fast paced industry ever does. I don;t mean this to be critique of how things are now) the day Memoto does shut the service – we’re going to end up with a mass dump of not-at-all organised photos! Indeed the LONGER we subscribe the WORSE the problems will be!
Result = The number of subscribers are the first year will be very small indeed…
Very sad indeed. Or perhaps Im missing something.
Hi Jon, @wdowell:disqus and everyone – we apologize! That was a bad typo from our side and has been corrected. All data belongs to the user, and only the GPS needs the extra step of being processed in the cloud. Best /NJ
So it’s not possible for you to build a service where I can download the GPS-info with my photos? Or is it a way you’ve chosen to build it to prevent users from switching to other services?
Assuming the “raw signal data” is embedded in the image itself, will it be available in downloaded images? Is this something other than lat/long?
Also, will timestamp data be available in downloaded images?
If GPS data is stored on the Memoto camera – in any format – it should be possible to access that data and convert it into standard EXIF geodata, shouldn’t it?
Yes, timestamp data will always be included. Yes, the raw signal data is something other than lat/long – a better explanation here: http://support.memoto.com/knowledgebase/articles/212395 Best /NJ
Thanks for the clarification, and I see that the article has been edited to reflect this which I was about to suggest 🙂
If there is an opaque identifier of some kind that must talk to the cloud to resolve geolocation data, it would be great to have an API to get at this data, or better yet to embed it in the image prior to downloading. I understand the concern about doing too much on the device, but that becomes moot once the image is in the cloud.
Don’t worry, when you download (or otherwise access your data from the cloud, i.e. via API), you get all your data. It belongs only to you. Best /NJ
Does that mean I can look back on 9 months of each year with me having taken thousands of pictures staring at my work monitor (interspersed with going out for a quick smoke and an occasional trip to the bog?
Sounds like you’re not a customer then..
I believe you take the camera off when doing boring or private things.
Will we be able to download the photos from the device without a subscription?
You can transfer them from the device itself, but you don’t get geolocation. I would hope we still get the data/time stamps.
Surely the geolocation data is in the photo metadata?
(see above reply re geoloc for technical reasons on why it’s not, though quite why it cant be added from cloud to photos before download i dont know, but that’s another story!)
Re Tim/Date stems I would really appreciate an answer on that one as that would be a huge thing, even bigger than geolocation.
This really sucks. Instead of making a super great cloud service so ppl want to use it they seem to make it extra hard to use it without the cloud service to force ppl to use it. I think I might wait untill someone does a memoto that is more open.
Three questions:
1) What assurances do we have that the service is economically scalable – down – if necessary in, say, 3 years time, if you see a large tail off of subscribers? I don’t know how high your non-flexible overheads will be (I appreciate you can up/down the amount of S3 data but you will need presumably somebody to keep things running/stable)
2) This fee, i note, is in dollars. What is the Euro conversation rate? Is it fixed or dependent on the value of the US dollar?
3) Also, crucially, for EU subscribers, does this fee include VAT or not?
Thanks!
Hi William,
Thanks for your questions.
We are building a world-class company that will endure and continue to build
amazing products in the wearable technology space. We’re here to stay, that
being said, we can understand your apprehension. You will always have an option to download your photos in bulk from the cloud, including other data.
The cost of the subscription fee is in US dollars, just like
the camera and tax will be added where applicable.
Best,
Sarah
Thanks for the reply, Sarah.
Im only apprehensive in sense that obviously it depends on the others if they don’t subscribe then i don’t want my camera to become a lame duck, as i am sure you would agree the service is kind of key to the whole thing, and i’m obviously hopeful it’s sustainable. Worst comes to the worse and you were forced to shut up the service – either to launch something better or whatever, perhaps the option – if it came to it – to embed geolocation would be possible retroactively. All stuff to think about in the future.
Great you have plans for other stuff in the future. It’s an exciting time for wearables.
looking forward to getting my memoto camera, perhaps in times to capture the autumn colours. And here’s to a weak dollar!
If I didn’t want to renew the cloud service membership after a couple of years, could I batch download my photos (including geodata) from the cloud? Or are they stuck there apart from single-photo sharing options?
Yes Willi, you will always be able to batch download your photos. It is safe to assume that the geodata will be included. Best /NJ
This sounds like a great price to me, and I’m probably going to buy another one.
$5 would be a more appropriate price. $9 (excl. tax) is more than Netflix, Hulu Plus, or even Xbox Live Gold and PlayStation Plus. Come on, guys. Too much.
I thought it was pretty reasonable – less than I expected for a boutique service like this. The cost of AWS for storage of all these photos could be more than $5 / yr.
If it was $5 / yr I wouldn’t have asked for a refund! But $130 / yr only to store the Memoto photos is a bit steep in my book.
Oof, I was mis-reading it as yearly. Yeah, that’s pretty expensive.
This is poor, and clearly just a way to get people to subscribe. Momentification, Geo-tagging etc should be handled on a users PC, via the app. NOT in the cloud. The cloud service will not last forever, and after that we’ll be left with a camera taking thousands of unorganised photos every day. Users should be able to get the full service without having to subscribe, clearly with the disadvantage of having to maintain their own storage. Really considering backing out of this, unless Memoto come up with a solution.
Will there be a discount for paying yearly instead of monthly?