Rating: We can see the augmented reality bit but …
Wow. The wires are all alive with rumours about a very futuristic project which Google is supposedly working on. The device has been speculatively named the Google X glasses. A very good reason for this being that Google Goggles is a very, very different kettle of fish. If the punters are right, this will be a major move for Google into the realms of wearable mobile phones. Such devices have been muted for many years and previously relied on Bluetooth technology. The important difference here is that Google glasses won’t act as a mere peripheral. They will be completely standalone communications devices – almost certainly using cellular technology.GoMo News attempted to track down the true source of all of these stories and it seems to us that they really stem from Seth Weintraub, a blogger for 9 to 5 Google. You can look up his report here.
Now, some of the stories based on Weintraub’s blogs are obviously guesswork. It doesn’t tale a brain the size of a planet to work out that if Google glasses are real they’ll be running Android.
After that, you simply have a good punt at what kind of hardware you’ll need and given that 4G/LTE is so trendy at the moment, it’s a good idea to throw that in as well.
The one big certainty, however, is that whatever else the Google glasses might possess, they will definitely have a heads up display (HUD).
And the smart money is on such a display only being on one side – the right side it seems.
What few people have bothered to do, though, is to think through why Google would want to be involved in a HUD device.
The answer is blatantly so that the device can display relevant information as you’re walking along.
And there you have it. Such a device would solve the one big problem that augmented reality (AR) offerings have.
Namely, how to know that there’s actually a relevant AR system operating in your vicinity.
You won’t need to search for AR information because as soon as you get near a building or location which has been enhanced with AR, the Google glasses will tell you.
The one bit which GoMo News doubts extremely is the UI which these glasses are supposed to possess. You apparently make selections by tilting you head.
Naturally, this work on paper and in the labs. But in the real world, who wants to keep their head dead still through fear of altering the selection you’ve just made on the glasses.
Great idea, Google but we think the concept needs a bit of working on.
