How many times fan boys (and girls) have fantasized about a device that could enable a romp through the virtual world while being firmly footed in the real world? How many times have the world craved for a device that would deliver them a virtual experience while they would be sitting in the living room or travelling in a bus?
Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to swoon over the next generation of computing; wearable computers. While the concept, in its entirety is hardly new, the enthusiasm with which it is being pursued now is truly remarkable.
Take Google Glass for example. Imagine a computer that you wear as a glass or shades over your eyes, being part of a virtual world while going through your everyday riffraff. The Glass will, no doubt, set a standard in mobile computing. But the question is how many people will be comfortable with a mini computer strapped to their face?
If it sounds a bit scary, try the iWatch being generated by Apple. A computer strapped to your wrist, just like a watch; except this watch will not only tell you the time but will also let you surf the internet, check mails, log onto social media, make you a cup of coffee… wait! It can’t do that; at least not yet.
Rivalries between technological giants have always been legendary. Microsoft versus Apple, Apple versus Samsung and very soon we could have a new competition, Google versus Apple in the field of wearable computers.
Let’s walk through the technology for a moment. The iWatch undoubtedly sports a large enough visual display with touch screen with a brand new operating system, specifically designed for it. While it may sound like a Smartphone being strapped to the wrist; minus the phone calls, SMS, MMS and the works; the idea is certainly interesting and can be played around a bit.
On the other hand we have the Glass. A display with a complex operating system with localized storage and an external wireless device for cloud computing; all set with sensors linked to cameras, eye and hand gesture detection, microphones, GPS, proximity detectors, and so one and so forth.
Clearly the Glass sounds more complex and technologically advanced, although it could also be the reason why people could turn away from it. It is just too complex, at least on paper. But a technology like this would be groundbreaking.
Reaching a conclusion from all this information might not be a good idea and only time will tell which way the world will turn.
