Smart glasses are the subject and the year is 2019. Over the course of the last two years there has been very little development in smart eye-wear for the masses. That is not to say there has been zero development. A few items in particular have gained interest among the tech cultists out there. Unfortunately the devices available are rather pricey.
There are quite a few smart eye-wear systems out there but today we focus on viable options for the general smartphone user.
If you are expecting something akin to virtual reality with actual vision at the same time, this is augmented reality. The real problem though is that anything that includes a heads-up display could be considered augmented reality. Most smart glasses seem to be marketed this way.
You are not alone in wanting a better experience.
We feel here at gadgethelpline that the tide will turn once we find a way to have true augmented reality within our eye-wear. The glasses will not need to be for prescription either, though this can be an option. They will be as normal as wearing sunglasses yet have all the functionality of a smartphone. And you should not need to have your phone in your pocket either, if done correctly. But, this is the augmented dream, not the reality.
Subtle smart glasses
Currently the subtlest glasses purchasable today seem to be from North focals.
Not only do they look just like normal glasses but you can also have prescription lenses included. The experience is, again, a heads-up display.
Vue are another contender for the ‘look like normal glasses yet have tech involved’ field.
They use bone conduction for sound. This leaves your ears open for local audio. Just as with the North focal offering above, these are basically heads-up display. Vue can be found on kickstarter, they also have their own site.
To summarise then. We believe once the glasses do not need to have a smartphone nearby, are fully capable of an acceptable augmented reality, things may change consumer wise. The glasses will most likely need 5G to function optimally; fully augmented vision needs a hefty amount of data in a very short time. The glasses will almost definitely use gesture control and eye movement.
Until then people are not going to pay high prices for what is essentially a head mounted smartwatch.