The promise of wearable computers is that the devices themselves will go away. They'll melt into the background to deliver data as needed, all without your having to fetch or look anything up. Google announced a few new features to its Glass software developers kit on Tuesday that help its face computer both be there and go away. With a few simple third-party apps, the company showed (probably better than ever before) just how Glass will evolve into something that's invisibly integrated into your day-to-day routine.
Glass' new GDK - or Glassware development kit - makes it easier for application developers to tap into the hardware, even when its offline, to perform tasks in real-time without having to go back and forth to servers in the cloud. It opens new possibilities for developers to build tools that center around either immersive or ongoing tasks (as opposed to, say, simply notifications about things like new email, or the ability to upload a photo and share it online).
Immersive tasks will let you dive into an application on Glass, much as you might on a smartphone, giving it your undivided attention - think gaming, for example. An ongoing task is one where you're swapping back and forth between the app and something you're doing - think cooking. Google showed a few new apps from Strava, AllTheCooks, GolfSight, Word Lens, and Spellista meant to demonstrate how developers can now use Glass to deliver immersive experiences, or enhance ongoing ones.
Spellista and Word Lens were immersive apps. The former is a simple letter jumble game and honestly it was ho-hum. Word Lens, however, was pretty amazing. It fires up with a simple voice command, 'Okay, Glass, translate this.' Then you can look at a sign written in a foreign language, and the app will automatically translate the text and overlay it on the display. This happens nearly instantly. It was straight out of the future. But the ongoing tasks were probably even more interesting than the immersive ones.
Take the new Strava app for Glass. Strava, a tool for tracking bike rides or runs, is immensely popular with cyclists and gaining ground with runners. But it's the type of app that clearly benefits from not having to pull a phone from a pocket or bag to get an update - you don't want to have to pluck it from a pocket while you're in the bike lane on Market Street. The Glass app lets it deliver real-time updates on speed and distance, and deliver ride segment reports simply by letting you look up. It promises to help you be more situationally aware, more in the moment, while still getting data delivered when you want it. Similarly, GolfSight can let you know where you are on a golf course, how far you are from the green, and what hazards are between you and it without having to dive into a phone.
Or take AllTheCooks, which lets you view or record recipes using Glass. One of the other promises Glass has, so far, truly failed to deliver on is the ability to do something else with your hands while still getting data updates from the device. There's been much speculation how Glass may one day be used in the operating room. But AllTheCooks shows how remarkably useful it can be in the kitchen. You can simply play the steps back without taking your attention away from what you're doing. You don't have to worry about greasy fingers on a tablet, or printed page. Meanwhile, filming step-by-step instructions without using your hands promises to be something that all manner of apps will be able to take advantage of.
When people have asked me about Glass, I've often tried to explain it by saying, 'it's Google Now for your face,' (a phrase I stole from Metafilter founder Matt Haughey). That's because the Google Now functions - delivering information to you before you ask for it - have been its killer feature, even more than the ability to take photos or videos. The way it can drop an announcement on you based on where and when you are is amazing. But previously I haven't seen third party applications tap into that same functionality. Instead, you get things like breaking news alerts from the New York Times, or notifications about @ replies on Twitter. That's clearly changing now.
There's been a huge over-emphasis on what Glass is (aesthetically ugly, of limited utility, socially awkward) rather than what it will be. Today, we got a glimpse of the path it's heading on - maybe our best yet. What's coming is a more technologically robust device that will enhance our situational and possibly even social awareness. And just think, one day it might even be stylish enough to wear in public.
Mat Honan is a senior writer for Wired's Gadget Lab and the co-founder of the Knight-Batten award-winning Longshot magazine.
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