Are Smart Glasses for You? You Might Be Surprised by the Answer.

Are smart glasses, like those from Meta, for you, for the average person, or simply fancy (too fancy) “gee whiz” hi-tech tools? Although they’ve been around for a few years, we don’t hear much about them. 

If you did your own online poking around, you might come away thinking that smart glasses are just a gadget that lets you do a handful of things, such as taking pictures and videos. Yes, you can do that with smart glasses and more—more than you might ever imagine. 

Smart glasses might be a practical device for millions of people for various reasons. Don’t be surprised if you discover that smart glasses might be right for you. You simply need to keep an open mind as you learn about them.

You might just discover that smart glasses are indeed for you.

Here are some practical uses for smart glasses. Here’s a checklist to help.

You might think smart glasses are mainly a gadget for snapping photos and recording video. That’s not the case. They can do a lot more…which means YOU can do a lot more.

And… keep this in mind, which could be the key selling point: You can do all the above WITHOUT having to reach for your phone (although you do need it on you):

1. You can make and take phone calls.
2. Send texts to anyone on your contacts list.
3. Take photos.
4. Take videos: record them or live stream.
5. Make video calls that show your point of view (what you see).
6. Stream your favorite music.
7. Set reminders for yourself.
8. Translate signs or menus (if your smart glasses have a “heads-up” display).
9. Track your health status via an app connection or built-in sensors.
10. You can get advice on virtually any topic via the AI interface.

Again, you can do all of that while keeping your cellphone in your pocket or backpack. Today’s smart glasses have built-in microphones, speakers, and touch controls that let you control your device, just as you can on your phone or a touchpad.

Who’s the target audience for smart glasses? Maybe everyone?

Instead of focusing on the features of smart glasses, as a sales pitch would, let’s talk about who they’re for. Who is that? They’re for users of today’s everyday technology. And quite honestly, that includes virtually everybody.  

• People who own smartphones…which is just about everyone over 18.
• Those who use a computer at home, at work, or for school (again, virtually everyone).
• Everyone who sends and receives texts.
• All those who use their phones to take photos and videos.
• The millions who send their photos to others via text, email, or social media
• Each of us interacts with Siri, Google, or other apps and bots to get basic questions answered or to ask for advice or directions.
• Those who like taking calls from and making calls to their friends and family.
• Anyone who listens to music or podcasts on a computer or phone and uses wired or wireless headphones or earbuds.

Sure, it can take photos, but you need to see the big picture.

Smart glasses are not simply cameras, nor are they simply glasses; they’re a device that connects you to your world. Understanding the potential of smart glasses means grasping what it can do and how it can work for you. 

Consider this:

1. Some people might use their cell phones only to make calls or text, but we all know you can do more than that, and millions of people do.
2. Others might use their computers mostly for sending emails and online shopping, but we all know our PCs and MacBooks can do more than that, such as making videos, creating music, or producing a podcast.
3. Finally, many people use Artificial Intelligence daily at home, via Alexa or Google Gemini, to ask about the weather or what time a restaurant opens; but millions of people already use AI for medical, business, or relationship questions. 

Then there’s our growing use of AI.

The percentage of people who embrace the unique and powerful capabilities of Artificial Intelligence is growing. In short, we can (and do) get advice, information, and help with anything we need or want to do from technology.

While there’s always something for people to complain about with new technology—privacy and security concerns, scams, and crime—we keep plugging away and adjusting. 

So why are we still in the dark about smart glasses?

But most people, even if they’ve heard about smart glasses, don’t know what they do or who they’re for. That makes sense: computer and phone devices and technologies have evolved slowly over time.

That’s not the case with smart glasses. Smart glasses (like a smartwatch) seem like a bigger leap—maybe an unnecessary one—and too much of a change in direction for most people.

• Not everyone wears or needs a smartwatch, and perhaps the same is true for smart glasses.
• That is, while smartwatches are handy, people are simply more used to their cellphones and computers.
• And smartglasses, unlike smartwatches, haven’t caught on that quickly.

With so many technological advances happening so quickly these days,

It seems there’s always something new to learn. It wouldn’t be the first time a hi-tech innovation changed the world.

Imagine if Steve Jobs had envisioned smart glasses.

In 2007, Steve Jobs, Apple’s co-founder, told an excited MacWorld audience that he was going to introduce them to three new products:

• A widescreen iPod (music player) with touch controls.
• A revolutionary mobile phone.
• And a breakthrough internet-connection device.

Then he wowed the crowd by saying, “These are not three separate devices. These are one device, and we are calling it…iPhone.” That changed everything, and we still feel the impact of his creation today. (By the way, Jobs forgot to mention that it also had a camera.)

Smartphones were created for a purpose you haven’t realized yet. Maybe the same is true of smart glasses. By the way… rumors say Apple is developing its first generation of smart glasses.

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