I don't think glasses as a wearable tech will catch on. I think it would be socially awkward for everyone to be sitting at a table with Google glass on.
Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
21–30 of 58 posts
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#22Ugh, I really hope not. I can't see any reason people wouldn't use this, though, since it's a lot less likely for someone to care about other people's privacy or convenience than their own. I can certainly see myself asking people to take them off if they want to talk to me (unless they're the same people that currently browse/text/play on their cell phones during conversations, as that's a conversation you might as…
I really don't like this mindset because, ultimately, it's a losing one. Technology marches on. It's already possible for people to wear undetectably-small cameras and computers on their bodies, and we're heading toward a world in which these types of devices will not only be feasible, but both affordable and useful. In other words: mainstream.
Given the reality of the situation, it's short-sighted to poke fun at "Glassholes" and complain about smartphone users, as if these technologies are merely obnoxious fashion trends that will disappear in time. Hundreds of years ago there I'm sure there were swordsmen who complained that gunpowder-based warfare was dishonorable. Is that who we want to be?
Yes, things can go wrong.
Yes, technology can empower evil just as well as it can facilitate good.
Yes, 2050 will be different than 2000.
So what? This has been true since the dawn of time. When did it become fashionable for techies to despair at the inevitable advance of technology? When did it become popular to whine incessantly about change? To look at every new development with an attitude of pessimism? To pretend that the world of yesterday was so perfect and pristine? What happened to putting our heads down and working on creative solutions to the problems that face us?
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#23I'm myopic with astigmatism, so I am very interested when the ophthalmic version is coming out. When I visit HN using my 15.6 inch screen laptop I have the zoom set to 150% or higher (the text is tiny), with my specs on.
An ophthalmic frame has to endure a fair amount of physical stress during the glazing procedure, especially curved frames. Also my dominant eye is oculus sinister, am I supposed to wear these damn things upside down?
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#24"year of smart glasses' not in my country :(.
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#25Year of smart glasses?
It's a half assed product, introduced years before it's any good for use, and it's main real utility is that of a smaller Go Pro-style live action camera.
Plus, it didn't even make any dent in the market.
It's not like Google search in 1996 or the iPhone in 2007, products that immediately changed whole markets.
So, no, 2014 would not be the year of "smart glasses".
With the display technology used and the battery life they have, those things are useless, except for showing off.
Except for the "eye level live action camera" part, you can do the same things with your smartphone, better and faster.
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#26"year of smart glasses' not in my country :(.
Yes, because that's just what your country needs, right?
(Whatever it is)
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#27Ugh, I really hope not. I can't see any reason people wouldn't use this, though, since it's a lot less likely for someone to care about other people's privacy or convenience than their own. I can certainly see myself asking people to take them off if they want to talk to me (unless they're the same people that currently browse/text/play on their cell phones during conversations, as that's a conversation you might as…
I really don't like this mindset because, ultimately, it's a losing one. Technology marches on. It's already possible for people to wear undetectably-small cameras and computers on their bodies, and we're heading toward a world in which these types of devices will not only be feasible, but both affordable and useful. In other words: mainstream. Given the reality of the situation, it's short-sighted to poke fun at "Gl…
But your assertion seems to be that new technologies should be above criticism by virtue of the inevitable march of technology itself, part of which is driven by consumerism and hype, and not any process which necessarily judges technology on its own merit. It hasn't yet been proven that smart glasses are going to be as transformative as gunpowder, or as revolutionary as the internet, or what have you. Maybe they will be, maybe not. Yes, an attempt by Google and other companies to push the new paradigm onto consumers will inevitably be made, but that's not necessarily the same as those technologies being an evolutionary leap forward.
Some of the criticism is probably knee-jerk discomfort and something new and nostalgia for the simplicity of the past, sure, but pessimism when properly applied is just part of the process of trying to look past the cloud of marketing spin and fannish enthusiasm surrounding an emerging technology and discern its actual relevance.
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#28the title alone reeks of future foot in mouth
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#29Year of smart glasses? It's a half assed product, introduced years before it's any good for use, and it's main real utility is that of a smaller Go Pro-style live action camera. Plus, it didn't even make any dent in the market. It's not like Google search in 1996 or the iPhone in 2007, products that immediately changed whole markets. So, no, 2014 would not be the year of "smart glasses". With the display technology u…
Interestingly, a friend of mine who is a professional videographer and who tried Google Glass told me he could think of a few uses for it in his field, but he couldn't come up with any reason why he would use one as a general purpose device.
Re: Why 2014 is the 'year of smart glasses'
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
I really don't like this mindset because, ultimately, it's a losing one. Technology marches on. It's already possible for people to wear undetectably-small cameras and computers on their bodies, and we're heading toward a world in which these types of devices will not only be feasible, but both affordable and useful. In other words: mainstream. Given the reality of the situation, it's short-sighted to poke fun at "Gl…
But your assertion seems to be that new technologies should be above criticism by virtue of the inevitable march of technology itself, part of which is driven by consumerism and hype, and not any process which necessarily judges technology on its own merit. It hasn't yet been proven that smart glasses are going to be as transformative as gunpowder, or as revolutionary as the internet, or what have you. Maybe they wil…
Yes, Glass may fail, but it seems obvious to me that the perpetual shrinking of technology is an unstoppable trend that was set in motion decades ago. It turns out that computers, and phones, and recording devices, and the internet are all really useful technologies, and people like having access to them wherever they go with as little hassle as possible. As time approaches infinity, the likelihood of our brains becoming hosts to powerful artificial computers approaches 100%.
It's going to happen. It already is happening. And it's been happening. Trying to stop it is impossible, and merely complaining about it gets us nowhere. I have no problem with a bit of pessimism, but if it's going to be so pervasive, I'd at least like it to be constructive or useful in some way. Less "omg this is happening" and more "this is happening, how can we adapt?"