Google, in its seemingly infinite reserve of nifty ideas that may or may not come at the expense of your private life, is reinventing yet another one of society's everyday tools: eyeglasses. Meet Project Glass, the tool that Google hopes will bring an entire smartphone experience right to your eyes, all of the time.
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While we can discuss how this changes "digital distraction" until the cows come home, what's more relevant to us is the camera capabilities of such a device. Google has posted some rudimentary, albeit convincing, video footage from an early build of the glasses. Even at this early stage, the video is playable in 720p HD, which means that the glasses may be able to record and take photos in much higher quality before they hit the market. Google has also posted some still images taken with the concept eyewear that, at the very least, look sharp and detailed enough for a beta product; if Google wants to match iOS devices in terms of camera quality, though, the camera will definitely need some upgrading.
As if whipping out your smartphone and snapping a photo in your favorite app wasn't easy enough, Google may make the process comically easier, almost telepathic, when these glasses hit the market. Imagine the ease with which consummate eaters can take photos of their designer hamburger; all they'll need to do is look down! In any case, it seems that the debate (argument?) of dedicated camera vs. smartphone, still in the height of relevance, might soon become a three-way brawl between camera, phone, and eyewear.
Can Google cram similar technology from this already tiny package into eyewear?
In a more meaningful way, what does this mean for the likes of the GoPro and Sony Action Cam? With their astonishingly small size and incredible video and photo power, Google may have their work cut out for them if they want to pack all of those features into glasses, a foremost consideration being lens size. Imagine taking cinema-quality 4k video without lifting a finger. Yeah, sounds nice in theory, but you won't have much ability in the way of composing shots. Let's just wait and see what Google can do in the coming months or next couple of years. If it's anything like their past endeavors, the world of imaging and technology will be thrown on its head once again.