Google, like Apple, Samsung and just about every other big tech player today, has been long rumored to be working on its own “smartwatch” that will bring smartphone-like capabilities to the wristwatch form factor. An unnamed source has now told Android Authority that Google’s version of the smartwatch will be manufactured by Motorola and will feature a Google Glass-like user interface that will include a series of digital “cards” that users swipe through to give them updates on times, events and other key information. Android Authority’s source says that Google may not be ready to release its watch at Google I/O this week, however, because it still needs to be tethered to a smartphone and isn’t a standalone device capable of receiving data on its own.
When your product is being ridiculed on Saturday Night Live long before it actually releases, it’s safe to say that you’ve got a major potential image problem. This is the situation that Google now faces with its Google Glass headset after Saturday Night Live cast member Fred Armisen skewered Google’s new device on a Weekend Update segment. In the skit, Armisen struggled to get Glass to implement a Wi-Fi password and he jerked his head around awkwardly while sifting through assorted menus before getting busted for watching porn on Glass in public. The skit’s depiction of Glass users as hapless dorks is not a flattering one and is likely something that Google will have to work very hard to combat if it doesn’t want Glass to become the next Segway. A full video of the skit is posted below. More →
Google Glass has taken a lot of criticism this week from people who think that it will go down as a piece of technology that sounds like a terrific idea but that never reaches mass appeal because it’s perceived as dorky, much like the Segway and Bluetooth headsets. I have to admit that I find this argument very compelling because it seems that Glass will, much like the justifiably loathed Bluetooth earpieces, make its users come across as anti-social cyborgs who are so caught up in their own little digital worlds that they won’t pay attention to what’s going on around them. More →
Is Google Glass the next major revolutionary portable communications device or is it just a novelty item that will be used by socially awkward dorks? That’s the question that Wired’s Marcus Wohlsen tried to answer while coming down definitively on the side of “Glass is for dorks.” In his argument, Wohlsen knocks the “inherent antisocialness of Google Glass” and says that Glass “is what happens when Silicon Valley spends too much time talking to itself.” He then goes on to compare Glass unfavorably with pocket protectors, the Segway and Bluetooth headsets, all of which sound like reasonable ideas but have been scorned by all but society’s misfits. While it’s unclear that Glass really deserves to be compared to the very dorky Segway just yet, Wohlsen does have a point that perceptions of Glass will rapidly sour if Glass users are generally oblivious to their surroundings, and if they don’t pay attention when talking to others because they’re too busy looking at weather reports being projected onto their eyeballs.
It can sometimes be unsettling when a person winks at you from across the bar. A Google Glass developer has brought things to a whole new level with a new application that allows Google’s wearable computing device to snap a picture with a simple wink of the eye. Developer Mike DiGiovanni was able to enable the wink gesture in Google Glass and has released the source code so that others to utilize the feature as well. The application, cleverly known as Winky, allows users to snap a photo even if the screen is turned off, effectively eliminating the need to issue a voice command. More →
Google has provided us with another tantalizing glimpse into how its Google Glass headset will look from a user’s perspective. In a new “Getting Started” demonstration video, Google shows how users can navigate through Glass’ main menu simply by swiping and tapping on the side of the headset to find and select icons. At the very least, the video shows that users won’t have to constantly shout out commands to their Glass headsets, and it shows that the Glass team has made some concrete decisions regarding how users will interact with Glass once it launches sometime next year. Google’s full video is posted below. More →
Additional specs are beginning to trickle out as developers begin to get their hands on Google Glass devices. It was already revealed that Google’s computer headset was equipped with a 640 x 360 display, 16GB of internal storage and a 5-megapixel camera. Developer Jay Lee, who received a developer prototype of Glass, has found that the device runs Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich and includes a dual-core TI OMAP 4430 processor, the same CPU as the original Kindle Fire and DROID RAZR. The developer also discovered that there was 682MB of useable RAM, although he believes there is 1GB of RAM in total since some of the RAM is being used for “other hardware purposes.”
Smart glass devices such as Google Glass could be the next big thing, and now research firm IHS predicts that shipments of smart glasses could reach 9.4 million units between 2012 and 2016. Initial shipments are expected to be around 124,000 units this year as Google Glass becomes available to developers. Adoption is expected to accelerate by 250% in 2014 as Glass becomes available to the general public. Google’s efforts to promote application development and increased competition in the market could result in sales rising to as high as 6.6 million units per year in 2016. The firm warns, however, that shipments could be as low as a million units through 2016 if the public is turned off by the device’s high price. IHS’s press release follows below. More →
One of the big questions surrounding Apple this year is whether there will be any significant market for its so-called “iWatch” that will reportedly act as a wearable computing accessory that can complement its other mobile devices. PCMag points us to a new survey of North American consumers from ChangeWave Research showing that roughly one in five consumers are either “somewhat” or “very” likely to buy an Apple-branded watch when it’s released. ChangeWave director of operations Andy Golub told PCMag that interest in the still-unconfirmed “smartwatch” is a testament to Apple’s enduring brand strength with consumers and noted that “Apple’s track record of delivering ultra-convenient, easy to use products with a perceived ‘cool factor’ is driving pre-release demand.”
Although gadget fans may be itching to buy a Google Glass headset, it seems that they’ll have to wait a bit longer before they get their chance. The Telegraph reports that Google chairman Eric Schmidt has told the BBC’s Radio 4 that the company expects to offer Glass to the general public in roughly one year’s time, which would give it a release date of early to mid 2014. Glass, which Google has been teasing for the past year as a headset capable of projecting images and data onto users’ eyes, features a 640 x 360 pixel display, 16GB of internal storage, a microUSB port and a 5-megapixel camera capable of shooting 720p video. While Google was originally aiming to release Glass sometime in 2013, it seems that the company has pushed back its launch timeline into at least next year.
Google’s Glass project is one of the more intriguing products the company is currently working on — at least, among the few projects Google has revealed to the public. Google Glass is eyewear with a heads up display that connects to the wearer’s smartphone and displays information in the user’s line of sight. We all get the basic idea and we’ve seen some great demo videos, but how exactly does Google’s Glass accessory work? Graphic designer Martin Missfeldt recently put together a terrific infographic that explains the exciting accessory, and the full graphic follows below. More →
![Google asks Glass developers to not blind users with advertisements [video]](http://i1.wp.com/boygeniusreport.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/google-project-glass.jpg?resize=252%2C168 "Google Glass")
In some ways, Google Glass sounds like a web marketer’s dream since it can conceivably project advertisements directly onto users’ eyeballs. But thankfully for all involved, Google is having none of that. Google this week released a new Glass development guidelines video that helpfully instructs developers to not “get in the way” with their applications. In the video, Google Senior Developer Advocate Timothy Jordan explains to Glass developers that “the user’s life comes first” and that “users want Glass there when they need it, but out of the way when they don’t.” As CNET notes, Google is also specifically telling developers that they may not ”serve or include any advertisements” in their apps, so it seems that Glass users won’t get bombarded with ads for miracle weight-loss drugs while they’re crossing the street. A full video of Google’s Glass guidelines is posted below. More →
