Robert Scoble is showing off the Google Glass at the Next Berlin conference, he gave an awesome keynote on Context, the upcoming wearable computing revolution. Robert Scoble has been using his Google Glass for about a week and offers here some of his impressions and thoughts on this Google headmounted computer Prototype. Check back on http://ARMdevices.net for much more on the features and performance of the Google Glass and all other wearable computing devices that I’ll video-blog in the weeks to come.
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Check out the $99 (retail MSRP) http://www.wime.tw NanoPhone that can be used as the NanoWatch wrist watch. It connects to your Smartphone using Bluetooth and it can also use its own built-in GPRS SIM card modem. The Wime NanoWatch does not run Android, but its embedded Linux OS synchronizes with Android: “Smart advisor that will remind you the new SMS, miss call, Gmail of your android smart phone”. They gave me a review sample, I’ll try to post a video review in the days/weeks to come. I’ll try to figure out exactly what kind of features work yet in sychronization with my Bluetooth Android devices. Let me know in the comments what I should try to test on it.
Italian startup I’m Watch thus far has sold 30 thousand Android wrist watches worldwide, with pre-orders for over 50 thousand units, their goal is to sell more than 100 thousand units this year. For now the watch runs on the Freescale i.MX233 and runs Android 2, with certain Android applications being optimized for the I’m Watch, Bluetooth synchronization with any Android or iPhone. Thus when you get calls, you can see caller ID on your watch, you can use the watch as Bluetooth headset, dial contacts, view email titles/senders, IM messages, plenty other Android notifications can be programmed to be shown on the watch. They have a gold version for 13000 euros, Titanium version for 800 euros, silver version for 1500 euros and the regular one has an MSRP of 350 euros ($389 in the USA, currently with a $150 discount, thus $239). They are also launching the I’m Here GPS Tracker, with a SIM card built-in, the GPS tracker can be used to track all types of things everywhere in the country. You can put it in the bicycle, inside the car, inside a bag, in pockets of children, etc, then it can localize the GPS tracker on your phone or on your I’m watch.
My video with I’m Watch filmed last year when they showed the first prototype of the device in 2011 got over 372 thousand views thus far, 351 comments, I guess my video-blogging kind of helped them launch the device. I’m looking forward to (I guess, and I’d like to see) the next version to be slimmer, lighter, using Bluetooth 4.0 low power, run on a faster Jelly Bean compatible ARM Processor, and run tons more Android notifications synchronizations apps, use a sunlight readable Pixel Qi LCD or an E Ink display for the display to stay turned on the whole day, thus whenever you glance at your watch, it always shows time, notifications and everything, no need to reach it and push the button to turn on the display.
I’d like to see the Android smart watch device market explode during 2013, I’d like to see real useful usage being demonstrated and proven to work perfectly on this type of device. They gave me an I’m Watch which I am now going to try to test over the next days and weeks and I’ll report and post some video reviews on my hopeful success in being able to use it to improve my overall Android and smart device usage and experience. 2013 is the year that wearable computing becomes a mass market success, this device is one of the first examples of what we can expect.
Casio is finally launching their Bluetooth 4.0 smartwatch to interface with smartphones such as Android phones and the iPhone, the phone can run 2 years on a regular wrist watch battery even with the Bluetooth 4.0 connection being active most of the time every day, when you get a call, it can light up and vibrate your watch, make it beep, display the caller ID, other features such as notifications, social network updates can also be enabled and managed through the app on the smartphone.
Kopin presents their new next generation wearable computer, headmounted hands-free interface micro-display connected device. This time it’s lighter, more compact, runs on a much faster OMAP4470, interfaces with Verizon’s LTE network, runs longer on a smaller battery, has a new higher-resolution micro-display, has a new better design. The Golden-i 3.8 is being released through Verizon in the USA during the next few months, through Vodafone in Europe, there are also potential carrier distributors for India and China. The use is industrial such as for using wearable computers for firefighters, police, doctors, mechanics, construction workers, military and more. The use can also be for all professionals and enthusiasts and early adopters of wearable computing.
During CES 2013, I was live video-streaming to a Google+ Hangout while reading the live IRC chat in the Golden-i headmounted display, that custom Google+ Hangouts and IRC chat functionality was programmed for me by Dave Hollick of Ikanos Consulting. This is just scratching the surface of what thishardware can do. With Android support coming to the Golden-i within a couple months, the whole Google+ Hangouts app and IRC apps can be made to run directly within the Golden-i, with voice-commands and voice dictation to live-blog, live-post to Google+ and live-tweet hands-free, for rapidly increasing the capabilities of ones headmounted hands-free Augmented Video-blogging setup.
This is how I video-blog.
As Google’s Project Glass approaches early public testing phases, the enthusiasm for wearable computing is rapidly ramping up during 2013, I think that we can expect some really amazing things to become possible and usable using these types of wearable computing. Check back in the weeks and months to come on http://ARMdevices.net for much more coverage of the real useful usage of wearable computers with the Kopin Golden-i representing the forefront of what we can expect.
Interaxon releases the Muse Headset. it monitors your brainwaves and connects to your smartphone using bluetooth. The combination allows for potential brain control of your embedded devices. Are you interested in thought control computing? You can pre-order your brain control accessory on Indiegogo here.
Here’s her keynote launching the device at LeWeb 2012:
