When I first saw the demo of the Google Glass prototype I was literally amazed. I didn’t know that a Heads-up Display (HUD) could be so practical in real life. Although, Google proved me wrong with the Google Glass project that will become the future of our lives. Today, the HUD goggles that we are going to talk about are not from Google or any other Tech giant but instead a sports eye wear giant, Oakley, who just launched their latest HUD Goggles sporting Google Glass like display and functionality but only for snowboarders. These goggles are being called “Oakley Airwave”.
The snow-sport specific goggles have a tiny prism at the bottom right of the lens where you can see useful information like GPS, routes, messages, etc. The HUD is powered by Recon Instruments and you can see all the information you need during your snowboarding trip like maps, routes, speed, temperature, etc. The Heads-up Display is amazing and appears to the eye as if it were a 14-inch display from a 5-foot distance.
The Goggles are priced at a hefty $600 and after buying the gadget you can download a free companion app for Android (and/or iOS as well) to connect your smartphone/tablet to the Goggles. You can then view incoming calls and messages directly in the goggles and control it via a wrist-watch like remote control that comes paired with the goggles. Text messages will appear in the goggles and users can either reply with a stock message like “Call me later”, etc through the remote control, or take out their phone and compose one. The goggles come with built in GPS support and an accelerometer so, when your phone runs out of battery power all you data is stored and available for further use.
The Goggles are launching today and will be available purchase at Oakley Store and will set you back $600. If you’re into Snow-sports then this is a must have for you. What are your thoughts on this gadget? Would you like to see similar type of goggles for Runners, Cyclists, Bikers, etc?