Google Glass has not been released to the public yet, but it looks like the company is already going to have competition in that market. Samsung is reportedly working on its own pair of glasses equipped with various hardware and software that can be used to perform limited tasks. Samsung’s version of the wearable computer glasses has shown up in a patent filing found by the Wall Street Journal this week. For the most part, the products in this category are called smart glasses, while Samsung’s are considered “sports glasses”, according to the report.
The new glasses are expected to arrive with a ton of features and could be on the market as early as next year. The filing shows that the product was registered in October and it mentions eyewear, smartphone connectivity and other smartphone functions. The Samsung Gear Glass product has been mentioned in the past and by looking at a few of the drawings, you can tell there will be a “heads up display” for notifications and the possibility of a camera. There are plenty of options available for this type of product and Samsung is going to offer as many of them as they can in order to keep market share from going to Google.
In one of the drawings you can clearly see a wire coming from the arm of the glasses, but there is no indication as to what this would be for. The wire coming from the glasses could just be for future options or could be cut from the final project altogether. Using the Gear Glasses as sport glasses would mean that you are active while using them and having a wire running to an iPod or smartphone just does not seem ideal.
The drawings also reveal a touchpad on the side and would be used as a tool while navigating through options on the device. Android software is expected to be controlling the device, plus it would be likely that support for Galaxy smartphones is also included. The display could be used as an extension of the smartphone display allowing users to see notifications, weather alerts for your area and more based on the user preferences. The images are likely the first prototype and only Samsung can be clear on what users can expect when the glasses come to the marketplace.
