Saturday’s Google Glass presentation at the Westport Library drew a diverse crowd. There were folks who make their living in technology, tech-obsessed teenagers, and curiosity seekers.
An engineer made the drive south from the Hartford area. His report:
Google Glass is definitely worthwhile. It’s the bleeding edge as far as technology is concerned.
At the moment it’s still all hype, because the glasses are a ways from being useful to the masses. But I think it’s cool that any random question you ask in casual conversation can be answered in a matter of seconds — it’s like having Watson (from “Jeopardy”) at your beck and call.
Where will the US Open be next year? What day was Lionel Messi born? How do you say “goodnight” in Spanish? What is the oldest town in Connecticut?
You could scan QR/bar codes hands-free, and have an ad or price pop up in the display.
You barely have to stop what you’re doing to read a text or news headline.
Do these glasses make me look cool?
They’re just scratching the surface idea-wise. Someone made the observation that this would be great for a museum, giving information about paintings you’re looking at. A baseball umpire could use it to call balls and strikes. It could also bring the TV perspective and functionality closer for sports (or anything else for that matter). It’s like your own personal teleprompter.
I would definitely consider getting a pair, once the price tag comes way way down. It’s about $1,500 now, though it’s still only a prototype — not a consumer product. They’re on limited release, aimed at developers. To get a pair you have to go to Google headquarters, and get them personally fitted.
Although, for one day last weekend, anyone could “see” the future right here in the Westport Library.