Focals by North

#1

Post by kgraves » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 12:49 PM UTC

Re: Focals by North

#2

Post by wlesieutre » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:04 PM UTC

If the Thalmic Labs name doesn't ring a bell, they're the former makers of the Myo gesture control armband (which was just discontinued).

By all customer accounts I've seen it was an expensive gadget that never worked reliably enough to be useful for anything, so hopefully they do better with glasses.

Re: Focals by North

#3

Post by webmaven » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:31 PM UTC

wlesieutre wrote: post #2

If the Thalmic Labs name doesn't ring a bell, they're the former makers of the Myo gesture control armband (which was just discontinued). By all customer accounts I've seen it was an expensive gadget that never worked reliably enough to be useful for anything, so hopefully they do better with glasses.

These glasses use a physical joystick (on a ring) to control and interact with the display, so it seems they are playing it very safe and this time around.

Of course, there are other ways to screw up (build quality, battery life, connectivity), but by eschewing anything fancy like voice control (ala Google Glass) they're signaling a certain conservatism that is reassuring.

Re: Focals by North

#4

Post by pg_bot » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:37 PM UTC

The thesis of this product seems to be that Google glass failed due to poor design. I think that's an idea worth exploring and the execution here does look promising, but I'll hold off on judgement until other people can review the device. Here are my immediate, unsolicited, uncollected thoughts:

There are many issues that I worry about with this kind of device, but battery safety and battery life are most important to me. Since you are strapping lithium ion batteries to your head, it could be fatal if there is a manufacturing defect or someone can remotely exploit the device. Getting the battery right is likely going to make or break this product.

Social acceptance is yet another large hurdle. People do not take kindly to surreptitious film making. We already have enough problems with people glued to their phones and those are at least stored out of sight.

I would try my best to ditch the ring. This is the palm pilot stylus all over again.

I was waiting for someone to do this, because I'd run the idea through my head and was uncertain of the outcome. I'm not sure if you will succeed, but I think you've made a decent product which is commendable. Good luck.

Re: Focals by North

#5

Post by wlesieutre » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:38 PM UTC

webmaven wrote: post #3

wlesieutre wrote: post #2

If the Thalmic Labs name doesn't ring a bell, they're the former makers of the Myo gesture control armband (which was just discontinued). By all customer accounts I've seen it was an expensive gadget that never worked reliably enough to be useful for anything, so hopefully they do better with glasses.

These glasses use a physical joystick (on a ring) to control and interact with the display, so it seems they are playing it very safe and this time around. Of course, there are other ways to screw up (build quality, battery life, connectivity), but by eschewing anything fancy like voice control (ala Google Glass) they're signaling a certain conservatism that is reassuring.

It looks like they have built-in Alexa.

Personally not interested in carrying an Amazon smart device with me everywhere, but it'll probably work for people who don't care.

Re: Focals by North

#6

Post by draw_down » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:52 PM UTC

Maybe not this time, but eventually, someone is going to make it so our phones sit on our faces and beam directly into our eyeballs. Then we’ll never have to look away, ever again! The future stinks.

Re: Focals by North

#7

Post by throwaway987909 » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:56 PM UTC

'information ... so you can have peace of mind" Piss off with this manipulative marking crap. Saying this sort of thing hurts people's mental health.

Re: Focals by North

#8

Post by anonfunction » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:56 PM UTC

pg_bot wrote: post #4

The thesis of this product seems to be that Google glass failed due to poor design. I think that's an idea worth exploring and the execution here does look promising, but I'll hold off on judgement until other people can review the device. Here are my immediate, unsolicited, uncollected thoughts: There are many issues that I worry about with this kind of device, but battery safety and battery life are most important…

>Social acceptance is yet another large hurdle. People do not take kindly to surreptitious film making.

I don't think these even have a camera.

Re: Focals by North

#9

Post by relyio » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:57 PM UTC

wlesieutre wrote: post #2

If the Thalmic Labs name doesn't ring a bell, they're the former makers of the Myo gesture control armband (which was just discontinued). By all customer accounts I've seen it was an expensive gadget that never worked reliably enough to be useful for anything, so hopefully they do better with glasses.

I've tried the Myo a bunch of times, at hackathons and such. I think it was a good product.

It actually worked.

The thing is that it wasn't that useful and they never found product-market fit. Yet, it was an avenue worth exploring.

If you are curious you can find used Myos on eBay, see for yourself. There is a world between them a leap motion for example.

Re: Focals by North

#10

Post by jonathankoren » Tue, Oct 23, 2018, 2:58 PM UTC

pg_bot wrote: post #4

The thesis of this product seems to be that Google glass failed due to poor design. I think that's an idea worth exploring and the execution here does look promising, but I'll hold off on judgement until other people can review the device. Here are my immediate, unsolicited, uncollected thoughts: There are many issues that I worry about with this kind of device, but battery safety and battery life are most important…

There’s no indication that a camera is included at all. It appears to be merely a display device with Alexa and a joystick ring.

Millions of people carry lithium batteries. They’re fine.