I jumped on the pre-order for the OMI way back when they first went live. The concept intrigued me enough to take the plunge early, and today I finally got my hands on it!

For those who haven’t heard of it, the OMI is essentially a wearable audio recorder that continuously listens to your conversations and interactions. Think of it as having a personal assistant that’s always tuned in, ready to capture and process the audio from your day. Their pitch? It’s designed to help you remember conversations, extract insights, and basically augment your memory through AI processing.

The unboxing was refreshingly simple. No unnecessary packaging theatrics here – just the essentials:

  • The OMI device itself (surprisingly compact)
  • USB charger
  • Lanyard for wearing it
  • A small holder/clip

The device feels solid but lightweight. It’s clear they prioritized portability over flashy design, which makes sense for something you’re supposed to wear throughout your day. I am hoping they come up with other ways to carry it.  I was hoping for clip.

What’s interesting is the privacy implications this raises. A device that’s constantly recording? That’s either incredibly useful or mildly terrifying, depending on your perspective. The company claims they’ve built privacy safeguards into the system, but I’ll need to dig deeper into how that actually works in practice.

I’m planning to test this thing out over the next few weeks to see if it lives up to the hype. The real question is whether it becomes genuinely useful or just another gadget collecting dust. Stay tuned for a full review once I’ve put it through its paces.

You can check out more details at https://www.omi.me/ if you’re curious about jumping into the wearable AI space yourself.

 

Getting it started.

  1. Click the QR Code on the back of the box.
  2. Follow the instructions (In theory)
  3. If, like me, you installed the app in anticipation of receiving it, click on the top-left of the app to pair.  It came up quite fast.
  4. Update the firmware.
  5. Wait.  It took a while to apply and restart the OMI.
  6. Go.  I started with training my voice.
  7. When you put the plastic holder on it, be aware that it has two openings on the side that align with openings on the OMI.