BackGoogle Glass is back with an enterprise edition
The new device, dubbed GG1, is slated to be launched at the end of the year
Premium
Just when everybody had written off Google Glass—the media slammed it as a failed innovation and declared the Glass project dead—there are reports on Android communities like droid-life.com, suggesting that Google is launching the next generation of Glass. The new device, dubbed GG1, is slated to be launched at the end of the year and will be an enterprise edition, meaning Google will push this first to the enterprise market.
While the next version of Glass is still in the nascent stages of development, Stephen Hall citing people close to the project, posted on 9to5google.com, that Google has privately been showing different prototypes of it to some of its Glass at Work, (a programme started in 2014, which certifies companies to make business or professional apps for Glass) partners.
Here is a background on the Google Glass project.
Early 2012: Google Glass was unveiled. A web-connected headset, Google Glass allows users to take photos, record footage and access apps through voice and gesture control. Developed by Google X, the facility within Google devoted to technological advancements such as driverless cars.
Early 2013: Potential Glass users were invited to use a Twitter message, with hashtag #IfIHadGlass, to qualify as an early user of the product. The qualifiers, dubbed “Glass Explorers" had to pay $1,500 and visit a Google office in Los Angeles, New York or San Francisco, to pick up their unit following “fitting" and training from Google Glass guides.
Early 2014: Google announced a move to a “more open beta", via its Google Plus page.
Early 2015: Google announced in a blogpost that Glass was being redesigned by former Apple executive Tony Fadell, and that it would not be released until he deemed it to be “perfect." As part of the change, Google also said that Glass has “graduated" out of the company’s experimental lab, Google[X], and will operate as its own Google department.
Glass has been one of Google’s most controversial products ever since its high profile announcement that featured skydivers, stunt bicyclists and men scaling down the sides of a building. Bars banned Glass, celebrities spoofed it on TV, the police ticketed drivers for wearing it, movie theaters called in the cops to crackdown on Glass-equipped “pirates;" and a female tech writer was assaulted in a Bay Area bar for wearing Glass while enjoying a drink. The price, too, at $1,500 was seen as a deterrent and very expensive for the average consumer to buy.
Given all the negative press, it was not surprising that when Google officially announced the end of its Explorer Program in January, the Internet sounded its death knell, and Glass was promptly, if not accurately, declared dead—only to be resurrected six months later, as an enterprise edition.
Glancing at Glass 2.0
The new edition is an enterprise edition. Little else is known about Glass 2.0 and Google too has been tightlipped about it so far. What we do know is that the reason for an enterprise edition this time round is that the first version of Glass had worked well at the workplace so it is seen as a safe bet. Moreover, Google for Work already has a customer base and is continually expanding businesses for its cloud platform. Given this scenario, Google Glass for enterprises could be sold in bundles with other services. Lastly, Glass can leverage the Android developer ecosystem.
However, given the backlash Glass faced earlier, critics are not too optimistic. They say that any wearable device such as smart goggles has to connect to backend systems, which in reality means that an enterprise edition of Google Glass would have to sync well with everything from SAP to Oracle to vertical specific applications.
It’s also worth remembering that Google is first and foremost a customer-centric company and has relatively little experience building and supporting products for enterprise use.
So, will Google get lucky the second time round or fall flat on its face again? Whatever the case may be, as the company’s blog post says “Hang tight—it’s going to be an exciting ride."
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
