Wearables

When will Google Glass finally go on sale?

When will Google Glass finally go on sale?
Press and certain members of the public have attended special events to try Glass
Press and certain members of the public have attended special events to try Glass
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Glass was originally unveiled at Google's developer conference in 2012
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Glass was originally unveiled at Google's developer conference in 2012
A limited number of developers and contest winners have paid $1,500 for early "Explorer" models of Glass
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A limited number of developers and contest winners have paid $1,500 for early "Explorer" models of Glass
Sunglass inserts help reduce the Glass "dork factor"
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Sunglass inserts help reduce the Glass "dork factor"
A teardown of Glass
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A teardown of Glass
Press and certain members of the public have attended special events to try Glass
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Press and certain members of the public have attended special events to try Glass
How a Google Now card might look with Glass
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How a Google Now card might look with Glass
Navigating with Glass
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Navigating with Glass
A social media update through Glass
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A social media update through Glass
Snapping a picture of a memorable moment
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Snapping a picture of a memorable moment
One early complaint of Glass wearers: It doesn't fold up like regular glasses
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One early complaint of Glass wearers: It doesn't fold up like regular glasses
Glass is sometimes spotted in the wild, particularly in places like Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco
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Glass is sometimes spotted in the wild, particularly in places like Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco
Glass is operated through voice commands and a touchpad on the side
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Glass is operated through voice commands and a touchpad on the side
Press in Los Angeles get fitted for Glass
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Press in Los Angeles get fitted for Glass
One side of Glass is flexible
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One side of Glass is flexible
Behind Glass
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Behind Glass
Glass from the front
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Glass from the front
Glass in multiple colors
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Glass in multiple colors
A Glass meet-up
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A Glass meet-up
View gallery - 18 images

When will regular consumers be able to purchase Google Glass? Ever since the augmented reality headgear was unveiled in 2012, we've been hearing Glass will be available to the general public in 2014 ... or maybe in late 2013 ... but probably not until 2014. So which is it? Time to set the record straight.

Back in February, a source very close to the Glass team told me to expect Google's augmented reality headgear to be available for purchase by average consumers by the end of this year, and for less than the US$1,500 that Glass Explorers have had to pay for the beta hardware that's in the wild right now.

Then in April, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt threw some cold water on that anticipation, telling the BBC that Glass was more likely a "year-ish away."

But the rumors that Glass could be reaching the noggins of the general public before New Year's Eve did not abate there. At Google I/O in May there was a fresh set of reports that Glass could get a 2013 release.

And then again on Monday, yet another round of chatter – started with a post at Computerworld – informed us that the drop date for Glass is now "back" to 2014.

A limited number of developers and contest winners have paid $1,500 for early "Explorer" models of Glass
A limited number of developers and contest winners have paid $1,500 for early "Explorer" models of Glass

Suffering from so much slow-motion whiplash, I checked in with a source within Google and was directed to the FAQ page for Glass that went up towards the beginning of this summer. The relevant part there reads:

Q: When will Glass be available to all consumers?

A: Our goal is to make Glass available to a wider group of Explorers later this year, with even broader availability next year so stay tuned.

While miracles can happen, making a declarative statement on an FAQ is about the closest you can get in this digital age to setting something in stone. So until I hear differently from someone with more authority than my old friend, Mr. FAQ, let's consider it official: No Glass for most of you this year. Sorry.

View gallery - 18 images
6 comments
6 comments
Paul van Dinther
No amount of hot looking young chicks make glass look cool. Maybe Google realises that deep down.
Daniel Gregory
I hope it's released soon so that I know what douchebags to avoid. Seriously...who needs to be connected all of the time??? I'll wait for the next big thing...which is a cloud OS that you can talk to, and it will give you precise responses.
Nairda
They should drive the glasses via Bluetooth from any smart phone. Let people download apps for whatever application they need.
I for one would love playing virtual laser tag against another 'Glasser'.
Wish they would also re-design the damn things so they look more like specs so it does not give everyone the perception that you have a mono-brow. A full eye monocle perhaps, for that sophisticated borg-baron steam punk look.
Dan Pompierul
I'm one of the doushbags. I want one really bad :-)
Juliet Schmidt
I guess I am a D-Bag as well Dan. I can't wait!
Tom Thurmond
people like like me, who are handicap. We would have great use for this, we cant use our arms, hands, fingers. It would give us freedom to take pictures, make calls and lots of other stuff without asking everyone to do everything for us. So call me a douchebag and avoid me i dont care, i will be happy i can do stuff on my own.