2013 and beyond is looking likely to be the frontier of outlandish technology - all the sensible things having already been invented designers must turn to the unusual to make it big on the global stage. Technologies including the soon to be mentioned Google Glass, have become a symbol of "I probably don't need this but by god it looks cool!" Then some of these massive steps in both technological and scientific accomplishment make you think "Why has this not been thought of before now?" Take for example the Bloodhound SSC - Britain's challenger to boost the land speed record - it uses a jet engine taken from a Eurofighter Typhoon and, as a starter motor, a Cosworth F1 engine. This level of problem solving is to be the norm as the rush to be the first/best heats up. However this list must start, much like the field of technology, at the beginning.
Google Glass
The newest entry on the list: "Things that you are going to get mugged for." Google's newest face fodder promises to be a mobile headset in a pair of glasses, or a mobile: "In front of your very eyes!" The benefit of having a mobile phone in something that you can stick on your face is lost on people like myself, who wear glasses not out of choice but out of necessity and unfortunately Google's product does not come with lenses but a frame without them. However, looking at the
Glass site it does seem that as it takes off customisation will become key. Whilst I may be a tad jealous of those of you with good sight, it shouldn't detract from the amazing technology equipped in something so small. A built in camera, GPS and Babel Fish-esque translator (I kid you not) are among the cascade of technologies that act very much like a Swiss Army knife, except without that thing that gets stones out of horses hooves. The benefits of having all this stuff right in front of you is the fact you don't have to worry about losing your phone especially, as the promotional videos show, you have a slight fancy for sky diving in which case your Glass will gleefully record your screams of terror/excitement at the utterance and live stream them to your friends who will wonder "oh god what if the parachute doesn't open and we've just watched some grisly Final Destination style destruction of our friend?" Unfortunately, as with most new technologies, coolness does seem to be a factor at the moment. The Tumblr
White Men Wearing Google Glassgleefully regals readers of pictures of these men wearing their Google Glass with one man demonstrating the future of multi-tasking by looking through his Glass to his phone. At the moment no release date has been set nor the cost of the tech but selected users who impressed Google using #ifihadglass were granted worthy of shelling over $1500 to buy a pair. Even then those people couldn't
lend them to a friend.