Meta is Apparently Phasing Out Photo and Video Sharing on Portal Devices

Users of Meta’s Portal products are reportedly receiving notifications that the devices will no longer support photo and video sharing starting at the end of August.

As reported by The Verge, Portal users are starting to see notifications on their devices that the video calling and messaging tools are about to lose major functionality starting on August 29. As shared by Katie Notopoulos on Threads, who has previously written about her love of Portal devices, the warning is being discussed in the private Portal by Facebook User Group.

According to the photo of the warning, Portal users have been told that they will soon no longer be able to share photos and videos from their devices. In fact, the alert says that all messaging is leaving Portal devices. Meta does stipulate that users will be able to continue to access photos and videos that are stored on their devices, for whatever that is worth.

Meta has publicly stated that it is no longer selling the Portal after it unsuccessfully attempted to pivot the product line from a consumer device into an enterprise product. The enterprise website where the Portal was listed last year no longer mentions the line. Portal was one of several camera products that were cut in 2022, both those currently in-market and those that were in development, in order to address the Reality Labs division of the company that was losing billions of dollars quarterly.

“Meta is no longer selling Meta Portal. However, we are committed to providing ongoing support for Meta Portal owners,” Meta writes on its Portal web page.

“While supported features will change over time, we will provide notifications of major changes to the device experiences through the device itself. We also plan to maintain system software with critical bug fixes and security patches.”

While there probably aren’t a huge number of fans of the devices out there — the aforementioned private Facebook Group has just 8,700 members — this does come as a blow to the experience, especially considering that Meta still says that it plans to support those who still use their Portal devices, even if it is no longer making them.

It is not clear why Meta would cut this specific feature from Portal devices, since it is arguably one of the most important aspects of the device outside of video calling. Whatever the case, current owners of a Meta Portal should expect a more restricted user experience starting on August 29.

Image credits: Meta