Like this…only on your face.
Wearing glasses that superimpose a layer of information—nearby pizza places, the local bus line, or, if you’re the Terminator, the amount of ammo left in your weapon—over reality is a long-held techie fantasy. Fighter pilots already use such “heads-up” displays to keep track of vital info while keeping their eyes ahead of them, but despite the constant low buzz about such augmented reality glasses for the rest of us, actual products have been few and far between. Now, though, Google employees speaking to the NYT’s Bits blog have confirmed that Google’s experimental lab is indeed building such a device. Due to come out at the end of the year, these “Google Goggles” are said to function basically as a smartphone you can wear on your face.
According the the Bits blog, users will be able to scroll around on the glasses’ tiny screen using small head motions. The glasses will also feature a low-res camera that monitor the world in front of the user and take pictures, but there are obviously privacy issues at stake with such a feature: apparently the team is currently discussing how to make it obvious to a bystander if the camera is on. The Google employees say that the glasses will not be released as a serious commercial product with a business plan, per se. At first, they will simply be an experiment that users can join. And if the glasses take off, well, then we’ll see about the money side of things.
Image courtesy of plantronicsgermany / flickr
February 22nd, 2012 at 5:59 pm
*Gasp* Oh my god, I want them, I really hope they look good though..
February 22nd, 2012 at 9:38 pm
@Aiden:
I’ve been waiting for the time when it would be practical (and cool!) to wear hyper-technological visual and communication devices.
If these take off, could full-helmet cybernetic equipment à la “Star Wars” characters be far behind???
How cool would it be to have a helmet that had built in cellular, music, web access, enhanced vision, and augmented reality, all with menus displayed via HUD superimposed on your helmet’s visor?????
Just think… unlimited customization and personalization… your helmet presents the persona that you want while keeping you connected instantly to whatever your heart desires. WOW!
Of course, I think we’ll completely pass that phase and move straight on to wet-wired implanted memory and computing devices.
Soon, your phone, video system, computer and numerous other personal electronics will all fit on a single chip implanted in your head.
Yeah… I want one.
February 23rd, 2012 at 6:28 am
How long is it going to be before some idiot wearing these doesn’t get the memo that there’s a truck bearing down on him, and walks right in front of it? How long before local authorities ban these goggles for the same reason they ban cell-phone use whilst driving?
Humans need to augment their brains before they take on augmenting reality!
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:09 pm
What if you already wear glasses? Will these fit over them? My first reaction was “I want these!”. Need to think about it though given the recent privacy issues going on with google
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:20 pm
In the process of moving information from DNA to ‘instinct’ to memory and now, ‘exosomatically’ to libraries; this is right in line
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:51 pm
Ian,
People were walking under trucks long before the cellphone was invented. They were walking under draft oxen long before movable type was invented. And given that Google has also built truly functional driverless cars, maybe the goggle could recognize and warn you about that truck.
See, the thing is, this is exactly how humans WILL augment their brains.
February 25th, 2012 at 9:41 am
Ever the cynic, I can imagine advertisers gleefully pumping their banners, slogans, and commercials right before your eyes as you walk down the street, or even in your home. “Eat at Luigi’s, best meatballs in town. Just there on your left.” Or, “Try Boston Brand cream cheese next time you make that bagel!”
March 14th, 2012 at 1:59 pm
DTdNav: somebody will then invent something like AdBlock Plus for Google Goggles :D