Sony Just Created A New Google Glass Competitor That Attaches To Your Current Glasses

Sony

While startups and large companies like Google are busy developing smart glasses, Sony has just invented a device that clips on to your current eyewear to add those same features (via The Verge). 

The device itself is a module that clips on to your glasses and essentially adds a small 640 x 400 pixel display, a camera, and a processor.

Sony claims the tiny screen is capable of showing high-quality full color photos and videos, and the processor inside is about on par with what you'd get in today's smartphones. 

The benefit of this type of gadget over something like Google Glass, according to Sony, is that you can clip it on or take it off whenever you need to.

You're not committed to wearing it all the time like you would be if you wore a prescription version of Google Glass.

Here's what you would see while looking through Sony's gadget.

It looks like the experience will be very similar to that of Google Glass, but specialized for certain use cases like sports. 

Sony

Judging by Sony's renders, it looks like the gadget will be rather bulky, so chances are you won't want to wear it all the time.

It sounds like Sony plans to license out the technology to eyewear and tech companies rather than releasing it as its own consumer product, and mass production is expected to kick off within the year. 

It's a different approach that what we've seen from most companies getting into wearable tech, but it's unclear if this will actually appeal to consumers. Even Google has been having a hard time convincing everyday consumers to wear computerized glasses, it seems, as The Wall Street Journal says the next version of Glass will be geared toward hospitals and other enterprise use cases.