There have been wearable displays for commercial and industrial purposes for a dozen years, pioneered commercially by Reflection's Private Eye and then adapted by some of the wearables folks at MIT. (note the link reference to visualization pioneer, Ivan Sutherland) This Mistubishi effort wants to take the wearable augmentation idea to the public. Will we see head-mounted displays common in the coming years? Pre-cellphone we probably would have thought it absurd to imagine everyone walking the streets, chatting and checking messages ... Next, will there be monitors on everyone's heads? ... Electronics giant Mitsubushi has shown a miniature wearable head-up display which it will release to the public in 2005. Named the Scopo, it will become the first mass market wearable display to augment reality for the everyday person. Designed for mobility and practicality, the Mitsubushi SCOPO wearable display is not the first available such display, but we expect its low cost (US$400) and ready availability will stimulate the market and further accelerate change in portable computing ...
When plugged into a cell phone, PDA or laptop with video functionality, you can stream directly to your field of vision or vice versa, recording footage on the fly. The SCOPO belt unit does not contain a hard drive for storing video or computing itself ...
Via Gizmo.com, which links to more details and also to video of the devices.
For another move toward wearables that doesn't seem as techno as the HUD, check out Oakley's ultra urban-hip Thump sunglasses with a built-in MP3 player. Rappers as early adopters?
Posted by: Lyn J | November 09, 2004 at 10:31 AM
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