headsupdisplay
Latest
Intel cancels its smart glasses due to lack of investment
When Intel showed off its Vaunt smart glasses (aka "Superlight" internally) back in February, we had high hopes for a new wave of wearable tech that wouldn't turn us into Borgs. Alas, according to The Information's source, word has it that the chip maker is closing the group responsible for wearable devices which, sadly, included the Vaunt. This was later confirmed by Intel in a statement, which hinted at a lack of investment due to "market dynamics." Indeed, Bloomberg had earlier reported that Intel was looking to sell a majority stake in this division, which had about 200 employees and was valued at $350 million.
Intel unveils smart glasses that you might want to wear
Intel has launched an impressively light, regular-looking set of smart glasses called Vaunt, confirming rumors from Bloomberg and others. Seen by The Verge, they have plastic frames and weigh under 50 grams, a bit more than regular eyeglasses but much less than Google Glass, for example. The electronics are crammed into the stems and control a very low-powered, class one laser that shines a red, monochrome 400 x 150 pixel image into your eye. Critically, the glasses contain no camera, eliminating the "big brother" vibe from Glass and other smart glasses.
Motorcycle helmets finally get decent heads-up display navigation
I'm a huge proponent of reducing any and all distractions while riding a motorcycle, scooter, or moped. Helmets and padded gear are great, but when you get down to it, riders are still just squishy people zipping through traffic next to giant machines that could kill you if a driver sneezes or decides to text a friend. So the idea of a HUD (Heads Up Display) for a motorcycle is equal parts intriguing and terrifying.
The Navdy is an $800 accessory that makes almost any car smart
Not everyone can afford to replace their current whip just to get the latest automotive smart features. The aftermarket world has your back if you want to upgrade your stereo, but if you're looking for an HUD (heads-up display), there aren't a lot of great options. Enter Navdy, a third-party way to make your car smarter with the power of projection. Two years after dropping a slick commercial and crowdfunding campaign, it's finally shipping.
iScout HUD helps drivers with directions and blind spots
With no standouts on the market, heads-up displays (HUDs) for cars never really caught on. For instance, Garmin's unit is proprietary, Hudway's concept is cool but simplistic and Navdy is already a year late and still hasn't shipped. A new contender called iScout is trying to address many of those issues. It works with any smartphone, shows notifications from apps like WhatsApp, takes or reject calls with a hand-wave, and has blind-spot cameras. Now comes the gotcha: It's launching on Kickstarter, so before breaking out the plastic, bear in mind that it may never ship.
Recon's HUD mask transfers your gaming skills to paintball
Recon Instruments and Empire Paintball's paintball mask is fun to wear — and I didn't even get to shoot anyone. The Empire EVS houses Recon's Snow2 heads-up display in bottom-right of the goggles, running on Android, with nine-axis sensors, Bluetooth, WiFi and GPS, while the helmet itself looks like a color-saturated Darth Vader pretender -- and I mean that in the best possible way. Slipping into it is easy, and an armband control unit with directional buttons makes navigation through menus (as well as zooming in and out of maps) hard to screw up. The mask itself, coming from paintball equipment maker Empire has UVA/UVB radiation protection and doesn't fog up inside when the action picks up and your breathing gets heavy. The heads-up display (HUD) can also talk with action cams like the GoPro, which you can mount on your paintball gun to peek around corners and, as one Engadget editor calls it: "cheat".
Jaguar's smart windshield will eliminate blind spots
It's hard to spot every possible road hazard. Mirrors and cameras will show what's behind you, but your car's roof pillars can still hide careless pedestrians and aggressive drivers. They won't be issues if Jaguar's 360-degree Virtual Urban Windscreen comes to fruition. The update to the company's windshield project uses cameras to create "transparent" pillars which highlight threats you can't see, giving you an extra moment to take evasive action. It promises distraction-free navigation, too -- the screen generates a ghost car that shows you where to turn, as if you're simply following a friend. The technology is still in mid-development and probably won't be as sleek as Jaguar's concept video suggests, but it hints at a future where you're rarely caught off-guard while driving.
Unsure about buying an EV? This Heads-Up Display may someday help
Say you've thought about getting an electric vehicle but didn't want to take the plunge until you were absolutely certain that you wouldn't wind up on the side of the highway with a dead battery. It's a legitimate concern known as "range anxiety," but assuaging that problem involves either manually keeping track of everywhere you go from day to day or actually buying the car and figuring it out as you go along. The AT&T Foundry, a startup incubator tasked with coming up with clever new tech products, has designed a Heads Up Display (HUD) that may sooth the nerves of skeptical EV shoppers. The lightweight HUD can be placed inside your gas vehicle and programmed to mimic the dashboard of whatever EV model you're thinking of buying. As you go through your daily grind, you get a feel in real-time of how far you can drive before needing a recharge.
Skully's Android-powered smart motorcycle helmet goes up for pre-order
If you take your motorbike rides seriously enough to want a smart heads-up display in your helmet, you can now do something about it. Skully has just launched a crowdfunding campaign for its Android-powered head protector, now named the AR-1; plunk down $1,399 and you should be one of the first to get the wearable when it ships in May 2015. That's both a lot of money and a long time to wait, but Skully is betting that you'll like the data you get while on the road. As promised, the helmet projects navigation, a rear camera view and riding info on your visor. Voice commands let you keep a grip on the handlebars, and smartphone pairing gets the headgear online. The price goes up to $1,499 if you wait until launch to make a purchase, so you may want to commit early if you're determined to augment your two-wheeled adventures.
In-car heads-up display lets you respond to texts with hand motions and voice
We've seen companies take a few stabs at smartphone-savvy heads-up displays for cars, but they tend to be one-way devices -- while they'll feed you info, you still have to reach for your phone to answer a message or get directions. Navdy may just have a smarter solution in store. Its namesake HUD not only projects car stats, navigation and notifications, but lets you interact with them through a blend of gestures and speech. You swipe with your fingers to either respond to or dismiss any alert that comes in; the system leans on the built-in voice commands from Android and iOS, so you can tell Navdy to get directions in Google Maps or play iTunes music as if you were speaking to the phone itself.
Recon's 'Google Glass' for sports gets a finalized design ahead of September launch
No, the Recon Jet still isn't out yet, but its manufacturer has a few bits of news to share. For starters, the sports-minded heads up display's brain box is now angled slightly upward, which supposedly improves the display's viewing angle and camera orientation. This tweak apparently boosts the HUD's ergonomics and makes it fit a bit better, too. The Jet is also now rated to IP65 standard, which means it'll be able to withstand dust and torrential rainstorms. Don't think that it'll work on your next swim, though, because submerging the unit is apparently out of the question. The outfit (thankfully) doesn't mention any changes to its September 25th release date, either, but it is spending the next month working on testing the Jet. Oh, and there's a protective case in the works too -- all the better to keep your $700 investment safe and sound. How protected to the Jet remains while it's on your face, however, well, that's up to you.
Samsung explores a stripped-down take on wearable displays
Samsung must want to keep an open mind when it comes to wearable displays. Just a short while after it explored the possibility of smart sports glasses, the company is back with a patent for a heads-up display with a built-in earpiece. In some ways, it resembles a stripped-down version of Google Glass; the transparent screen and camera are familiar, but Samsung is using only the earphone assembly to prop things up rather than a more elaborate frame. Its layout would include a collapsible eyepiece, too. The patent says little about what the company would do with the hardware besides "augmented reality," and there's no guarantee that you'll ever see this in stores. If you find yourself picking up this wearable alongside some future Samsung smartphone, though, you can at least say that you saw it coming.
Sailboat racers get a heads-up display to call their own
It's not easy to track the progress of a racing sailboat -- you don't always have the free time (or free hands) to check a compass or run across the deck. Keeping tabs on a watercraft should be much less of a chore in the future, though, as Afterguard has released a heads-up display system for high-speed sailors. The gear relays speed, wind vectors and other boat data from a central unit to any crew member wearing a pair of Recon Instruments glasses, letting a team focus on outrunning the competition rather than getting its bearings. Afterguard isn't cheap at $2,499 for a complete system ($1,899 during April), but you couldn't even get a sailing HUD before now unless you were an America's Cup racer; this makes the technology available to a much wider audience.
Google Glass collision detection could one day save you from yourself
Once upon a not so distant time, a woman took a long walk off a short pier while checking her Facebook page. True story. Then there was the time the San Diego police department ticketed a woman for driving while under the influence of Glass. Clearly, we've fallen victim to our technological dependence, not just literally, but also legally and it requires a solution. It's unsurprising then that Google had the foresight to come up with a way to save us from ourselves, at least where its Glass eyewear is concerned. A recently surfaced patent application, dated October 2011, references a "collision-avoidance action" that could help reduce Glass-related mishaps. The technique detailed in the filing doesn't set off any alarms or alerts for Glass users, but it will "[de-emphasize] at least one of the displayed virtual objects" in the HUD to keep you from smashing into glass or walls or telephone polls or other people. You get the point. It does this by gathering data from Glass' sensors and calculating the distance between you, the oblivious party, and potential obstacles in your way. Go ahead and laugh at the absurdity of this all now, but in five year's time when we're all rockin' Glass-like eyewear, you'll be thankful for the heads-up (pun intended). [Original Image credit: RuthMarie/Flickr]
Insert Coin semifinalist: HeadsUP is a smartphone-powered HUD for your car
HeadsUP is in the extremely early prototype stage, but that hasn't stopped us from falling in love with the concept. Unlike many other heads up displays for cars, this one can be added to any vehicle and relies on your phone to power it. So there's no worry about the technology becoming hopelessly outdated. It displays the UI from your Android phone (or tablet, we suppose) on a transparent overlay on your windshield, allowing you to check your notifications or get directions while keeping your eyes glued to the road. And, rather than have to worry about taking your hands off the wheel to tap tiny navigation icons, you can simply wave your fingers at it to control the UI through gestures. Or, you can just talk to it the way you normally would using Google Now or S Voice. You can see all of the Insert Coin semifinalists here.
Garmin's smartphone-compatible HUD makes an appearance at IFA 2013, we go eyes-on
The connected car concept has gained plenty of traction, but not everyone can afford an Audi or BMW to get that functionality built in. Deutsche Telekom's hoping to bring a taste of that luxury to the masses by pairing its Navigon Telekom Edition app with Garmin's heads-up display. This version of the app, available exclusively for German customers, brings heads-up directions, speed limit and other important stats to the HUD, provided it's connected to your smartphone via Bluetooth. Garmin's dash-mounted hardware is already available stateside for $150, but it's up for grabs here at IFA for €149. We go eyes-on in the gallery below. Zach Honig contributed to this report. Follow all of our IFA 2013 coverage by heading to our event hub!
Garmin's $130 smartphone HUD limits distractions with line-of-sight directions
We've become so dependent on GPS that a three-minute drive often means frequent glances at an in-car navigation companion. But taking your eyes off the road can be very dangerous, even if it's only for a moment. If you're fortunate enough to have one, a head-up display will let you get to your destination efficiently and safely, and Garmin's got a new aftermarket solution to keep you cruising on the cheap. The company's new HUD projects bright directions onto a transparent film mounted on your windshield, serving up guidance within your regular line of sight. The simple interface displays your current speed and the speed limit, turn arrows, the distance until your next turn and an ETA. The Garmin HUD is compatible with Bluetooth-equipped smartphones running Garmin StreetPilot and Navigon apps. It's expected in stores this summer with a MSRP of $129.99.
Recon Jet HUD now available for pre-order in $499 Pilot Edition
Want to embrace Recon Instruments' sunglasses-based vision of the future before it officially reaches store shelves? You can: the company has just started pre-orders for its Jet heads-up display in a $499 Pilot Edition. The inaugural eyewear will come with apps for both cyclists and triathletes, and it should beat the production model to market by several months. There's even a financial incentive for that impatience, as the pricing goes up to $599 on July 21st. If you don't mind a potentially rough experience while tracking your mid-race performance, the Pilot Edition is waiting at the source link.
Raytheon's updated JTACs situational awareness system eyes-on (video)
Though you may think drones do all the fighting these days, actual soldiers on the ground are still used to call in airstrikes. Sometimes it's still necessary to visually confirm targets before the flyboys create a smoking crater. Though the army has toyed with smartphones and other means to connect soldiers, Raytheon has created a new JTACs (Joint Tactical Air Controller system) prototype for ground forces to let them separate friendlies from enemies and relay the information to strike forces. The system consists of a chest-worn computer, heads-up monocle viewer and wrist-worn display, which together let the solider select a target merely by looking at it and pressing a button. They can also tag friendly forces the same way or send update situational data to the rest of the team, whether they're on the ground or flying a fighter overhead. That assistance from the ground will make it easier for those at the yoke to differentiate between friendlies and targets. We tried the prototype ourselves in a limited, 2D environment here at the 2013 Paris Air Show and, without any help getting set up, were able to tag targets as red diamonds and friendly forces as amber squares. Everything we did was also displayed on second screen, simulating the ability to send live updates to other soldiers or the base. Impressive as it was, the whole thing is merely a prototype for now, though, that could eventually change. The military AR system is part of a larger platform called AWARE, which Raytheon hopes to eventually deploy. For a detailed explanation about how it works, check out the video after the break.
Recon Instruments reveals Recon Jet, a sports HUD so bright it needs shades (video)
We know Glass comes with some snap-on shades, which is no doubt great when casually vlogging in the sun. If you're heading down a mountain, though, you're going to need something a little more like Recon Jet. You may know Recon Instruments from its line of technolicious HUD ski goggles, but Jet sees the firm leap into more casual (yet no less useful) eyewear. Inside you'll find a dual-core processor, WiFi, GPS, Ant+, Bluetooth and an HD camera, plus all the sensors you could want (altimeter, thermometer, accelerometer etc). Recon Jet comes with its own open platform (which typically has been based on Android), and will have some existing native apps (video streaming, Facebook integration, etc.) on display at Google I/O this week. Comparison with Mountain View's own product will be inevitable, but we're guessing that Recon hopes you'll leave Glass on your desk, while popping Jet on for the weekend.
