Why you should look out for smart glasses in 2015
We all know and love our smartphones, laptops, tablets, kindles, and iPods. We can’t imagine a world without them. We know such a world once existed, but how on earth did they manage to survive? But now imagine this:
It’s the morning commute. First Monday back after the New Year festivities. Oh how you wish you could run away from reality. But hold on, you can! All you have to do is pop on your smart glasses and the next thing you know you’re surrounded by little curly-haired people with hairy feet, amidst clear blue skies and luscious green rolling hills, while Gandalf offers you his pipe as you share some weed. (Pipe weed, for those of you who aren’t familiar with Middle Earth).
If this sounds too far-fetched to you, start getting used to it. The market for wearables is already opening up with the advent of the smartwatch; Android have already released their models and Apple is to bring out their Apple Watch sometime this year.
Smart glasses won’t be far behind. In fact, they’ve already been around, just not commercially. Osterhout Design Group products initially started out as devices for military applications, and are now broadening out into other industrial areas. They have been investing into their range of smart glasses for the past six years. So why smart glasses now if they’ve already been around for a while?
If you’re a keen gamer you’ll be familiar with those Oculus style headsets that completely immerse you in virtual reality. If you’re part of the rest of the world, you won’t have a clue what that is. Quite simply, picture a black rectangular box strapped to the top half of your face. The new smart glasses, however, are augmented reality glasses, such as Google Glass, which means that digital graphics and information are overlaid on top of the real world. Hence with one eye you can be admiring Gandalf’s majestic beard and with the other keeping track of your stop.
And what’s more these smart glasses are more fashion savvy. Last year Vuzix partnered with Lenovo and launched their M100 device, which looks a bit like an extended Bluetooth earpiece. This year Intel will be partnering up with Vuzix following a $24.8 million investment. Intel’s investment highlights their faith in the wearable tech market, which they claim is the next big growth area.
Jaunt, another wearables company, are tapping into the entertainment industry. Following their amassment of $28 million in funding from backers that included British Sky Broadcasting, they have released apps that range from an on-stage view of a Paul McCartney concert to that stroll with Gandalf through the Shire.
So if smart glasses will be able to transport you to Middle-Earth, what is there that they won’t be able to do? Jay Wright, vice president of product management at Qualcomm, stated that smart glasses had the potential to ‘disrupt the smartphone‘. Will smart glasses kill the smartphone star? Or anything that has a screen, for that matter. Are we likely to see a future of people watching television, listening to the radio, maybe even virtual shopping, all from a little piece of plastic curved around the side of their head? And how would advertisers feel about this prospect of their industry being turned upside down? If programmatic is challenging for them to grasp, embracing – and more importantly understanding – the technology of smart glasses may have them reaching out for some aspirins.
But perhaps we’re jumping the gun a little; after all, in order for wearables to be truly trending, they need to be just that – wearable. Teaming up with the fashion industry is imperative if wearable tech companies such as Vuzix and Jaunt want to see their products fly off the shelves. In an age where ‘sleek’ is the golden word of aesthetic descriptions, if the smart glasses don’t look good, consumers won’t bite, it’s as simple as that.
So whilst you may be getting used to your smartwatch, or eagerly anticipating it, watch this space; and if at some point this year or in the next you sit down next to someone wearing glasses on the tube and hear them say ‘You’re right, he was an absolute fool of a Took’, you’ll know who they’re talking to.
If you are interested in becoming a broadcasting partner, or would like to know what our integrating technology can do for you, contact our Partnership Account Manager Matthew Layton – matthew.layton@exaget.com or +447533517396
If you are interested in advertising opportunities, please contact the CEO of Exaget, Shankar Meembat –shankar.meembat@exaget.com or +447411130680
‘Cars will have radios in 2015’
January 14, 2015
Roger Lanctot, thought-leader in the connected-car space, has recently made this prediction: that cars in 2015 will have radios. Now, that might seem a little bit obvious at first glance, but with the increasing rise of online audio streaming services and podcasts, it may look as though radio is in danger. But we disagree. Radio, across its various platforms, is here to stay – it’s just evolving.
There is something about silence in a car that is discomforting and awkward. A silent car with passengers puts strains on social etiquette as you grapple for something inane to say. We need audio in our cars. But AM/FM radio is struggling to maintain its presence as the UK may or not be poised on the brink of a national DAB switchover. The glitch with AM/FM? The hissing and crackling of radio white noise, which is an infuriating and teeth-grinding experience. It was all very well listening to your favourite Capital FM while you whizzed around London, but dare to venture into a neighbouring home county and you’d be met with white noise and no choice but to browse for a local radio’s reception, or switch to a CD.
And it’s not just DAB that’s threatening AM/FM – younger generations are becoming increasingly dependent on and attached to their mobile devices, increasing radio listening among mobile users. And at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, a new potential craze really came to the fore – the connected car.
Both the CES, held in Las Vegas this year, and the North American International Auto Show in Detroit – dubbed the ‘Motor City’ – aimed their focus on the future of the connected-car and the probability of bringing this concept one step closer to consumer production. And whilst Mercedes-Benz’s self-driving model is a stretch beyond our imagination and not due to hit any car dealerships any time soon, the first connected-cars may well be on roads this year. And as the name suggests, they are connected to the internet.
Connected cars, with their fancy apps, could make the radio obsolete as they sidle over to the dark side of music streaming services. Rdio, one such service, is to pair up with Bosch, an interface manufacturer for connected cars. In Jaguars and Land Rovers, which use Bosch’s system, Rdio will be the only subscription music app. Except that the automakers are also planning on partnering with Apple and their own connected-car system, Carplay. Add into this mix Spotify, Pandora, and Google’s Android Auto and it’s all a bit of a kerfuffle from the business perspective.
But whilst streaming services are cool and popular, there are two fundamental downsides to having them in your car as a radio replacement. Firstly, streaming services could potentially be a hazard to drivers. Think about how frequently you flick through a playlist to get to the song you want, and then compare that to how frequently you’d flick through radio stations. That’s extra seconds of attention taken off the road. Secondly, there can be no denying that radio is the original social medium. Real-time traffic updates, weather reports, the latest news – just the sound of two presenters nattering away at each other makes us feel more connected and part of the world, unlike streaming, which is automated, impersonal, and cold.
And let’s not forget mobile radio. Hundreds – thousands – of radio stations worldwide can be accessed anywhere by anybody on their mobile while they’re mobile. Pair this with the connected car, and all of the relevance that radio in a connected car can deliver can be offered today. For example, imagine having the most relevant and up-to-date traffic information to where you are travelling, or an offer from the service station at the exit you are approaching – something that music streaming services cannot provide. The relevance that being connected can add to the radio experience has the potential for stations to build even more loyal listeners. After all, radio have been voted as the most important feature for new car buyers, alongside connectivity. A mobile radio may be the best solution for broadcasters, advertisers, listeners, and automakers.
Another reason for radio to stay: radio listeners are less likely to switch channels during adverts than television audiences. Which, combined with the potential to deliver highly relevant ads to the listener, is golden news for advertisers.
This is the concept that drives Exaget’s forward-thinking technology. Using a refined blend of database-analysing technology and a dash of common sense, we are able to create an overall profile of a radio listener, and target relatable adverts their way. Adverts that are not only compatible with the radio station, but with the radio listener themselves. The interaction does not just consist of ‘sports radio = listener more likely to be a man = insert ad for booking a test drive’, but also works on a ‘listener-radio station-advertiser’ relationship platform, adding value to all three parties involved.
But with cars looking to become connected to the internet of things in the foreseeable future, who’s to say that mobile radio, with its interactive and relevant ads, won’t make a progression onto dashboards? But if that’s a bit too futuristic for you to digest right now, you can at least take away this with you – radio is here to stay. It’s just in the process of getting a face lift. It may or may be DAB; it will more likely be mobile; but it will still be ‘the radio’.
If you are interested in becoming a broadcasting partner, or would like to know what our integrating technology can do for you, contact our Partnership Account Manager Matthew Layton –matthew.layton@exaget.com or +447533517396
If you are interested in advertising opportunities, please contact the CEO of Exaget, Shankar Meembat –shankar.meembat@exaget.com or +447411130680