The avalanche of “wearables” to come has just begun. Undoubtedly the most talked about has been the Google Glass, which go on sale from today 15 April with some lights and shadows because of their weaknesses.
Poor distribution and limitations
Google will market its most coveted wearable as of today, Tuesday, April 15, exclusively for US residents who are over 18 years of age and have a valid shipping address within the country.
The units will be limited and although the exact number of connected glasses that will be available is unknown, is likely to run out quickly and last a single day. Its starting price will be 1,500 dollars plus taxes, a fairly high price considering that it has no innovative utility and that will have to spend months or even years of development until it is a completely “polished” product.
Regarding geographic limitations of marketing, Google has admitted that it is not prepared to offer it in the rest of countries, although predictably the massive sale of Google Glass arrives in the next Christmas.
Glass technical weaknesses
Despite being released today, Google Glass has been available to developers for many months and thousands of users have tried them at trade shows and exhibitions. From this period the users have removed several technical weaknesses that Google should solve as soon as possible:
- Low battery life: A problem already known by all of us and we suffer daily in many of our gadgets. It is estimated that the autonomy of Google Glass oscillates between 3.5 and 5 hours, very little if our intention is to make intensive use of them. The problem will increase when developer apps grow as mushrooms and they consume more resources than the average.
- Visibility of the screen in bright conditions: The viewfinder is little isolated from the ambient light and if we are in a place where there is a lot of light the screen is not seen correctly.
- Non-folding structure, weight and size: The glasses (which have little glasses) do not have the possibility of folding like traditional glasses, which makes it difficult to store them comfortably and increases the risk of breaking. On the other hand its dimensions and weight make them more uncomfortable than what Google has wanted to sell us from the beginning.
- Lack of relevant applications: With them we can orientate ourselves, make calls, record and take pictures … but really there is nothing in them that we feel is essential, and many users complain about it due to its high price. This is likely to be solved when they spread internationally and developers play their part.
- There are other problems that for me are probably influenced by the person who is using them such as headaches and fatigue or voice recognition problems.
Some jokes and warns that to use Google Glass will be necessary to carry a phone, a hat, a solar charger on the hat and if you do not see up close … your usual glasses underneath.
Time will tell how Google solves this paper and if Google Glass becomes a gadget as essential as our smartphones are today.
