Having spent three years miniaturising its invention and trialling it among the developer and 'Explorer' community Google is ready to launch Glass on the public, hoping to create positive feedback and stimulate demand. The voice and touch activated miniature computer, worn on a spectacles frame with a miniature optical display, can shoot film and video, and give handsfree access to the internet. Glass is mounted on a pair of compatible spectacles and the small screen sits above the wearer's right eye. The wearer can simply look up to see things like directions, notifications and content from custom Glass apps on the screen.
Many technology experts believe wearable computers such as Google Glass will be the next big market for consumer devices, and could replicate the evolution of smartphones from personal computers. On Tuesday a limited stock of the devices will be available for general sale in the USA at a price of $1,500, and however many are available it is expected they will quickly disappear.
Fears about privacy are being taken seriously by Google, which has issued guidelines to its Explorer community saying: “Breaking the rules or being rude will not get businesses excited about Glass and will ruin it for other Explorers.” Glass evangelists hoping that the technology confers on them greater licence to record whatever is in eyeshot will have no luck getting the company to back them up on that claim.
Google founder Sergey Brin has said that Glass is a step toward his original vision, to make available the information a user needs without having to initiate a search. He believes the freedom to take pictures or deal with messages without having to fiddle with a device will be liberating – now that vision will be tested by a larger number of more impartial users, for whom the opportunity will be spiced by the offer of free frames or sunglasses on this occasion only.
