Google Glasses applications (electric, iPhone, smartphone, iTunes)

[destinedtodave]

They haven't been announced yet, but the tech world has been blowing up after some inside info about Android-based augmented reality glasses was released. According to sources, they're supposed to be released this year sometime.

Google to Sell Heads-Up Display Glasses by Year's End - NYTimes.com


I personally think these sound awesome. I've been really unimpressed by tablets, but this concept makes me feel like a kid. I've heard some points made that the Google Glasses won't be able to do anything that a smartphone can't do. But I find the concept of augmented reality really promising, and think there could be some really unique and innovative apps that could be developed for it.

What are your pie-in-the-sky ideas for apps? Some obvious ones are facial recognition, virtual reality adventure games, "post-it" notes on the periphery, and google maps navigation. I think as the camera tech on it improves, we might be able to expect things like thermal imaging (night goggles) and screen manipulation by retinal movement.

[Bo]

If you want to preview this, try the Google Goggles app on an Android phone. I pointed Goggles at the cover of a book once and in about 15 seconds, it presented me with links to the Amazon page for ordering the book AND a page to order the stock photo of the landscape scene that was on the book's cover! I was amazed.

[kazyn]

I have been hearing about augmented reality for a long time. I hope I get to see it fully implemented before I'm too old to care

[destinedtodave]

Originally Posted by Bo

If you want to preview this, try the Google Goggles app on an Android phone. I pointed Goggles at the cover of a book once and in about 15 seconds, it presented me with links to the Amazon page for ordering the book AND a page to order the stock photo of the landscape scene that was on the book's cover! I was amazed.

And imagine getting info/links at anything you look at as the recognition improves. Mountain ranges, stars, buildings, or museums. Or that person whose name you can never remember

This stuff can be done with an Android phone like you said, but I guess the key point (besides the wow novelty factor) will be how intuitively the info overlays "reality".

[Pooua]

A real life Dennō Coil.

Denn
The Domainless - Denno Coil - YouTube

Of course, it could overlay maps and show live electrical lines highlighted and locations of tunnels.

[gy2020]

A language translator could go with it and a way to help you trigger memories as well as having all knowledge in front of you. Isn't this the Matrix Revisited? I remember watching this on tech shows 10 years ago and saying "That's going to change the world!"

[destinedtodave]

Originally Posted by gy2020

A language translator could go with it and a way to help you trigger memories as well as having all knowledge in front of you. Isn't this the Matrix Revisited? I remember watching this on tech shows 10 years ago and saying "That's going to change the world!"

Yes that's awesome! I'd probably fork over the dough for it just for a speech-to-text translator app. Imagine seeing English text scroll across the top of your HUD as someone speaks Mandarin to you. And when you travel, you can finally understand all the mean things the locals say about you on the train

[Pooua]

Originally Posted by decafdave

Yes that's awesome! I'd probably fork over the dough for it just for a speech-to-text translator app. Imagine seeing English text scroll across the top of your HUD as someone speaks Mandarin to you. And when you travel, you can finally understand all the mean things the locals say about you on the train

You don't need to see the words to have a translation. We already have:

SpeechTrans for iPhone
SpeechTrans

Lingvosoft®
Speech Recognition, Speech-to-Speech Translation, Voice Synthesis

Universal Translator
App Store - COMMUNILATOR FREE - Universal Translator

and several others.

[destinedtodave]

Originally Posted by Pooua

You don't need to see the words to have a translation. We already have:

SpeechTrans for iPhone
SpeechTrans

Lingvosoft®
Speech Recognition, Speech-to-Speech Translation, Voice Synthesis

Universal Translator
App Store - COMMUNILATOR FREE - Universal Translator

and several others.

Seeing the words scrolling across my glassed would be much more helpful for me personally. It's a step closer to having a "natural" conversation with someone in different languages.

I don't think that these HUD glasses are a technological leap so much as a new intuitive interface. I'm loving the idea of augmented reality when I choose it, rather than pulling out my iphone to look at the screen. There won't be much Google Glasses can do that an iphone can't, but that's not the point I don't think.

[Pooua]

Originally Posted by decafdave

Seeing the words scrolling across my glassed would be much more helpful for me personally. It's a step closer to having a "natural" conversation with someone in different languages.

I don't think that these HUD glasses are a technological leap so much as a new intuitive interface. I'm loving the idea of augmented reality when I choose it, rather than pulling out my iphone to look at the screen. There won't be much Google Glasses can do that an iphone can't, but that's not the point I don't think.

The HUD applications that most interest me are those that present the world from a new visual perspective. My emphasis is more on images than on text. I am going to guess that when wearing glasses, you probably are wanting to pay attention to a lot of other things than text scrolling down your screen. So, I would expect that most of the text applications would need to be terse. Images, however, can communicate a lot of information quickly. A GPS takes advantage of this, but it doesn't superimpose its presentation over your field of view, whereas the HUD could.