Wearable Computing
It's probably not a big surprise, but South Korean IT giant Samsung looks to be preparing to challenge Google on the smartglasses front, patenting its own wearable computing "sports glasses" design in Korea.
Despite their Robert Downy Jr. -led marketing campaign to associate the letters in HTC with weird phrases like "hipster troll carwash" or bright slogans like "here's to choice," HTC has most recently seemed more like the Harried Tech Company to observers.
As we approach the 2014 release date of Google Glass, tinkerers and app developers have innovating several apps for the new smartglasses. Even though the wearable computing devices are still in the "explorer" phase, where just a few thousand Google Glass beta editions have been sold to a few lucky developers, technophiles, and journalists, a lot of applications for the smartglasses have been fiddled with.
Smartwatches are certainly becoming the new smartphone, with lots of companies trying to figure out just how this new technology will work for consumers. This time, it's Adidas that just unveiled its new "miCoach Smart Run" watch.
The reviews are in, and the Galaxy Gear has emerged battered and bruised from tech testers. While certain features have been almost universally given a thumbs up, the overwhelming opinion is that the Galaxy Gear is just not ready for primetime.
While the Google Glass smartglasses are still in its preliminary trial phase, called the Google "Glass Explorer" program, some competitors to the augmented reality devices are on the horizon. One is already available, and its price is already set at $600.
Metaio, an augmented reality software company, has come up with an interactive automobile manual that promises to make tune ups hands-free and easy. The company demonstrated the app in a video, using Google Glass.
Google Glass just got a little more user-friendly, or at least friendly to its users' wallets. In the most recent software update, Google has eliminated the need for an additional data-tethering plan, by allowing Google Glass to stream data directly from its companion Android app.
Google Glass keeps getting more and more features, and the most recent system update, released on Monday, is no exception.
Samsung has finally unveiled the Galaxy Gear smartwatch, along with its newest flagship phablet, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. "We have created something incredible," started the unveiling of the Galaxy Gear. But from the start, it seemed to look a lot like the prototype that VentureBeat exposed earlier this week.
A Google Glass release date in 2014 is looking pretty certain, now that the smartglass's rumored app store, "Boutique," has been confirmed to debut in 2014, according to details in a lengthy New York Times feature on the Mountain View's new wearable computing devices.
Google has reportedly admitted it bought WIMM Labs last year, signaling its possible interest in wearable computing that sits on your wrist, no on your face.
In Field Trip, Google Glass might have found its killer app.
Remember when Tom Cruise is walking down the hall of advertisements that recognize who you are by scanning your eyes and personalize their messages accordingly?
Google Glass might go on sale for about $300, when it finally becomes available to the public at large. That's according to a researcher at a market research firm in Taiwan, who has put his name behind the figure at a seminar.
