MicroOptical to Demonstrate First Bluetooth Eyewear Viewer

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.microopticalcorp.com/Press/docs/DemosDV-1.doc' target='_blank'>http://www.microopticalcorp.com/Pre...s/DemosDV-1.doc</a><br /><br /></div>"The MicroOptical Corporation, the leader in eyewear viewers for the portable electronics industry, will demonstrate its DV-1 Digital Viewer, a color eyewear system featuring Bluetooth™ wireless technology, May 20-22 in booth 645 at the Society for Information Display Conference in Baltimore, Md. The DV-1 viewer, which will be available to application providers and systems integrators in mid-June as a developer’s kit, offers wireless, hands-free and head-up viewing of electronic devices.<br /><br />“The DV-1 viewer is MicroOptical’s first digital wireless eyewear viewer,” said Mark Spitzer, CEO of MicroOptical. “The 12-bit qVGA color display, which is capable of handling both bit map and text input shows images from compatible PDAs and PCs via Bluetooth short-range wireless specification. Our developer’s kit will allow the development community to evaluate the technology and create business and consumer applications that require mobility, situational awareness and privacy, such as public safety, inventory management and medical data viewing, all with the user un-tethered from the image source.”<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/MicroOptical DV-1 Model.jpg" /><br /><br />Interesting. These solutions are starting to get more realistic every day! Could you see yourself using one of these if the price was affordable?

[lurch]

Could you see yourself using one of these if the price was affordable?
Not a chance! But then again, I don't do anything that would even remotely lend itself to this type of "solution". I'll be interested to hear what situations people could use this in!

Just re-read my post, it sounded sarcastic -- I didn't mean it that way! :)

[Noel]

Sure!
Makeitso!!!

http://www.seespotruninc.com/images/locutus4.jpg

[CoreyJF]

How about a doctor that could read chart or patient info without diverting eyes. A mechanic with instant access to schematics. A pilot with real-time flight position information. A school teacher reading and teaching Hamlet with text and critical essays in constant view.

[Unreal32]

How about a doofus who thinks he can read an ebook with one eye while he drives with another? :roll:

[dMores]

i think it's about time.

now that we've educated people to accept bluetooth headsets we're ready for the next step.

cool stuff.
but as long as pdas are the size they are, i don't see the point in me getting a device like that. only if the ppc can be reduced in size would it make sense.

[CoreyJF]

As horribly dangerous as the idiots I see shaving and reading on the Beltway everyday. Like all useful technologies, there will be abuse. Such is life.

[egads]

"Could you see yourself using one of these if the price was affordable?

For something work related, heck ya I could see using one of these. Out of work I'd never use one. I don't even carry around my Axim or cell phone out of the work enviroment.

[portus]

One deciding factor of practical use of this sort of device is the screen resolution you get from the "view". qVGA? That's the same limited resolution as the PPC screen itself. Why bother?

[adamz]

Oooh!! Have this integrated into a motorcycle helmet!! Does it have a bluetooth audio headset too?

The iPAQ could be in the jacket pocket, and the bluetooth GPS could be under the seat. The eyewear viewer could show location maps on the windshield of the helmet in real time... while also showing incoming SMS messages or caller ID for phone calls. Voice activation could allow the user to answer phone calls. And all this without being tethered to the computing device. Heck, plug in a bluetooth transmitter to the motorcycle's computer, and you could display speed, mileage, gas levels, etc. on the eyewear display.

[Noel]

This tech is bound to become ubiquitous.
Think 10 year old kid tossing Gameboy Advance in favour of head's up display.
Next gen will be able to walk and digital view @ same time!

8O

Noel

[felixdd]

Oooh!! Have this integrated into a motorcycle helmet!! Does it have a bluetooth audio headset too?

The iPAQ could be in the jacket pocket, and the bluetooth GPS could be under the seat....

Can the Ipaq manage two BT connections simultaneously?

[Kaber]

You can have multiple devices connected with Bluetooth. I think that is the point of the tech.

I would definately use one of these if they were afordable. Anyone who uses their PDA for long stretches (think a couple hours at a time) knows how it works the neck, and if you have a dual sleeve for your iPAQ it works the wrist as well. Anything to alleviate the strain of staring into my lap.

[beq]

Where's IBM's stuff from the commercials?

I forget if it used voice input or some nifty eyeball-movement-sensing-input thingie?

[rlobrecht]

One deciding factor of practical use of this sort of device is the screen resolution you get from the "view". qVGA? That's the same limited resolution as the PPC screen itself. Why bother?

I agree. This with a PDA has some use, but is limited. How about this with a smartphone?

[oboulanger]

They need a much better looking lady to sell this thing.
I sure don't want to look like her if I ever get one!
:wink:

[Hooked]

Given Bluetooth's limited bandwidth, I wonder about the frame rate of the device. From Microoptical's press release, it sounds like this is a kind of proprietary viewer for discrete images rather than a qVGA viewer which uses wireless instead of a cable.

I think its usefulness would be very much limited to the applications similar to those listed where the user simply needs a hands-free data reference. Also, given the size of the battery pack, I'm not sure there is much advantage over having a cabled connection to the pda.

I would be much more interested in something like a wireless version of their SV-9 PC viewer. 640x480 24-bit color 60Hz. Although for $2500, I would only be interested, not purchasing.

Has anyone actually tried any of Microoptical's products?

[shindullin]

It sort of the looks like the headsets the Jem'Hadar in star trek. I wouldn't wear one of those things out in public, unless I wanted everyone to stare at me so much that I couldn't concentrate on the screen or do any work. I has geek appeal though.

[rmasinag]

I dont know if non real time displays woul let you see what you're typing, as long as there is frequent updates of the display. I think this would be useful with say the Ipaq 1940? with BT and Textmaker and Pocketop KB. The I wouldn't need a laptop to type my papers in school. My tiny Imation card reader will take care of file transfers for me.

:mrgreen: Hope this dream is not too far!

[Dave Beauvais]

They need a much better looking lady to sell this thing. I sure don't want to look like her if I ever get one!
:wink:
Oh, that was tactful. Not to stray too far off-topic, but I think it's kinda refreshing that they chose not to use some 18-year-old blonde beach babe in a Seven-of-Nine catsuit wearing a piece of technology that she'd never be caught dead using. This woman is very attractive, in my opinion, while at least looking somewhat believeable. i.e., someone who might actually use a product like this in the real world outside of a photography studio. (Though perhaps not in public. ;))

--Dave

[Crystal Eitle]

They need a much better looking lady to sell this thing. I sure don't want to look like her if I ever get one!
:wink:
Oh, that was tactful. Not to stray too far off-topic, but I think it's kinda refreshing that they chose not to use some 18-year-old blonde beach babe in a Seven-of-Nine catsuit wearing a piece of technology that she'd never be caught dead using. This woman is very attractive, in my opinion, while at least looking somewhat believeable. i.e., someone who might actually use a product like this in the real world outside of a photography studio. (Though perhaps not in public. ;))

--Dave
Amen, Dave. I went and looked at the picture again (I confess, I hadn't paid much attention to it on first glance), and she's plenty attractive, even if she's not a nubile teenager.

Oboulanger, you registered solely for the purpose of leaving that totally unnecessary comment?

We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread....

[Noel]

Dave... I wouldn't be surprized if she has a Cat O Nine in her right hand.

:twak:

Noel

[Noel]

Ooopz!!!

Hi Crystal - nice day!

:oops:

Noel

[Crystal Eitle]

Ooopz!!!

Hi Crystal - nice day!

:oops:
No worries - sometimes I wonder if I'm being too harsh. After all, I'm not the modeator. Er, moderator :wink: .

[Joff]

I agree wih you Hooked. Although, I am very interrested in a wearable display, a qVGA is almost useless. I need at least a VGA display to view those PDF files.

Also, I expect the frame rate to be very poor because of the BT bandwitdth (720kb/s). Again useless if you want to play games or videos. Let's put our hopes instead in the emerging Ultra WideBand technology.

In fact, to function properly as aTRUE alternate display of a PDA, you probably need a PDA with a dedicated video output. I think the Toshiba 740 has one (with a special adapter). Has anyone tried it?

But I think we are getting there, slowly though 0X

[WillyG]

Could you see yourself using one of these if the price was affordable?
Nope, ill wait for a bluetooth contact lens.

[sponge]

She looked a little mortified to learn what she was wearing to me :P

[adamz]

Can the Ipaq manage two BT connections simultaneously?

Yes, I can be connected to the cell phone while also being connected to ActiveSync via bluetooth. The old Ericsson R520m doesn't like to be connected to more than one thing at a time though. But I wonder if the viewer uses a serial port profile or what. Maybe a Bluetooth GPS won't be able to connect if the bluetooth serial port is already taken? I don't know.

[Will T Smith]

I can see secret service agents using these for information or status displays. It will go nicely with the "phone-cord" headsets they wear :-)

Beyond that, these would be excellent HUDs for pilots, race car drivers, even regular drivers. I could certainly see secretaries and rececptionists adding a one-piece earpice/mic/HUD.

[ctmagnus]

After all, I'm not the modeator.

Yeah, Steve's the modeator! :)

I have a link for that somewhere but I can't find it right now.

[Steven Cedrone]

After all, I'm not the modeator. Er, moderator :wink: .

Yeah, Steve's the modeator! :)

I have a link for that somewhere but I can't find it right now.

Man, you guys are never gonna let me forget that one...

I should go back and edit my original post... :wink:

Steve

[cessquill]

I'm quite happy if you guys don't like her. More for me. :alfdance:

I'd be quite interested in something like this. You're right - maybe they would have to up the bandwidth, or use some clever compression technology to squeeze out a decent frame rate.

If it incorporated an earpiece, then just as a GPS unit alone it would be extremely cool. I could pretend that I was in Star Wars when I'm driving around, and flip it back when I know where I'm going, citing that I'm using the force. :robot:

My 3870 copes quite nicely with connecting to a BT GPS unit and a mobile phone. It's not so happy running both lumbering bits of software next to each other though, but hey.

[oboulanger]

--Dave[/quote]
Amen, Dave. I went and looked at the picture again (I confess, I hadn't paid much attention to it on first glance), and she's plenty attractive, even if she's not a nubile teenager.

Oboulanger, you registered solely for the purpose of leaving that totally unnecessary comment?

We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread....[/quote]

Sorry guys, I didn't mean to hurt anyones fellings out there.

I wasn't being agressive. I just tought she looked clumsy wearing such a thing. A good way to make somebody look "cool" or want to wear it would be to have a sharper , sexier lady wearing it.
I know most of you disagree. BUt hey that's the way life is, its unfair.

L'Oreal and other marketing centered companies know this for shure: you need attractive people to where your stuff if you want your customers to be more confident about using it.

This thing is not very esthetic yet it is (for someone I'm sure) useful.

I was just trying to spin a little humor into it. The main issue I wanted to arise was people will not use this thing whatever how good it is if users think they'll look stupid wearing it.

That was my point. So you see it was a little less shallow than what you might of tought.

And for the record, I've changed email thus I have a new ID. Is that a problem for you, are first posters not allowed to make relevant comments?

Oliver