Living in an Augmented Reality

There’s been enough press about this, so I won’t go into details.  Vuzix had a demo of their two newest displays (the 920, with the camera attachment, and a not-yet-functional physical prototype of the Wrap, due out this summer).  Suffice to say, I believe these displays are marking a turning point for mobile AR. 

Are they sleek and stylish?  Hmmm.  Not yet (by fashion standards) … but, by “what came before them” standards, the new wrap will be very interesting.  Will I carry a pair and wear them?  The answer there depends 100% on the answer to the question “What will I see when I look through them?”   In other words, what are the applications going to be?

The important point, of course, is that the price and quality of these displays, combined with the power of the next generation of mobile devices, will make it possible for people to finally start answering that question.

I have to admit I’m both optimistic and pessimistic at the same time about the Vuzix Wrap 920AV that was annouced at CES this year.  

Displays from companies like this (we have a bunch of them) are pretty low end, and haven’t really been suitable for virtual reality and augmented reality.  These ones are intriguing, though.  With see-through optics, they might actually be useful for “everyday” AR;  with two cameras and an (even cheap) orientation sensor, more interesting things might be possible! 

Of course, the proof will be in the implementation, not the specs or press.  If the cameras and orientation sensor are poor quality, if the field of view is too narrow, if they are uncomfortable, if the optics suck … any of these things will kill it.

But, we’ll probably still buy a bunch to play with.  Too bad they won’t give me a pre-release one soon!