Google Goggles are obviously only virtual goggles, and they'll stay that way. Or will they? Not if rumors inside the company are accurate.
A recent New York Times article claimed that several Google employees said that "Google Goggles" (yes, actually tangible goggles!) will be hitting the market by the end of the year at a hefty retail price of somewhere between $250 and $600. Design-wise, they'll be quite similar to Oakley Thumps (left), a discontinued product that let you listen to music on your sunglasses. Google will probably try to make their glasses less bulky, for that was one factor that lead to the downfall of Oakley Thumps (notice the huge speakers on either side of the sunglasses)But what really will make these glasses stand out will be their features. There will be a built-in low-resolution camera in the front of the glasses. The camera will be used for object and location identification. According to one unnamed Google employee, "you will be able to check into locations with your friends through the glasses." Obviously, there'll be major privacy issues with your glasses recording everything, and moreover, everyone, you see, so that might take some time for Google to sort out.
The glasses will also be able to work seamlessly with other Google features like Google Cloud, Latitude, Goggles, and Maps. Information will be displayed with a "Heads-Up Display," whatever that could mean. How about navigation? Well, these glasses will have quite unique navigation, to say the least. Apparently, one of the controls will be tilting your head to scroll and click. This may seem complicated, but Seth Weintraub from 9 to 5 Google says "We are told it is very quick to learn and once the user is adept at navigation, it becomes second nature and almost indistinguishable to outside users." I guess it was only a matter of time before the world of technology entered our glasses...
