Google Glass is rumoured to be launching sometime around April 2014, but is this much talked about product set for failure before it even hits the shelf?
LoveMyVouchers.co.uk, the UK discount code site, recently surveyed 1,132 people to find out whether or not they plan to embrace this new wearable technology.
In all, 68% of those asked said that they were unlikely to invest in Google’s latest invention because they would feel too embarrassed to wear it in public. A similar number also said that they would not feel comfortable talking to somebody else who is wearing the device. With safety and privacy issues being hot topics of discussion on the web, perhaps it is not difficult to see why.
It is thought that the state-of-the-art glasses, which enable users to experience augmented reality, will start at around US$600 when they eventually hit the shops, and according to the results of the survey, this will also put a lot of people off. 53% of the people who participated said that the price was too high, while 61% stated that they had no need for another gadget of this kind.
Is Google Glass set to join the list of inventions which have famously failed to catch the public’s imagination in the past, inventions such as the Sinclair C5 cycle ‘car’, Betamax video or the battery-operated Segway vehicle? With Apple also delving into the world of wearable technology in the form of their upcoming iWatch, only time will tell which companies will come out on top in this developing market.
Survey results
| Yes | No | Don’t Know | |
| 1. Are you aware that Google Glass is expected to be released in 2014? | 52% | 46% | 2% |
| 2. Do you think that US$600 is too much for the product? | 53% | 36% | 11% |
| 3. Would you feel comfortable wearing Google Glass in public? | 29% | 68% | 3% |
| 4. Would you feel comfortable talking to someone else who is wearing Google Glass? | 32% | 64% | 4% |
| 5. Do you feel that you are likely to have a use for any of the technology that Google Glass has to offer? | 27% | 61% | 12% |
| 6. Are you concerned about Google Glass privacy issues (e.g. being filmed without permission)? | 70% | 11% | 19% |
| 7. Are you concerned about Google Glass safety issues (e.g. cyclists using the device)? | 58% | 21% | 21% |
| 8. Do you think that wearable technology in general is something that will interest you in the future? | 42% | 32% | 26% |
http://www.google.co.uk/glass/start/what-it-does/
