Google Glass Beta Testing in Orange County

Tuesday, Google Glass went on sale for one day only to anyone for $1,500, but Les Daigle, of Orange started Beta testing for Google two months ago. “I was on the list for two years,” he said.”It takes a long time to get it.”

Daigle demonstrated the different things Google Glass can do. “I just used Blue Tooth and paired it to my phone,” he said.

Not only can he read his e-mails and make phone calls, but it has a built in translator. He can look at a sign in English and read the Spanish translation on his Glass, or vice versa.

It also accepts verbal instructions to take pictures and video from his point of view. “Ok Glass, take a picture,” said Daigle and a picture of what he was looking at popped up on his phone screen.

“Ok Glass, take a video,” said Daigle. He stepped inside the next room and started looking around as the video showed up on his phone. “I could be doing surgery in here. You could hook that up to an HDMI cable and you could watch that on a screen. So I’m in here doing surgery, you don’t have to contaminate the room, you don’t have to suit up. You can see what I see.”

“It’s in beta testing right now. That is one of the things you want to use it for. I’m trying to teach kids about agriculture. I recorded pulling a baby calf that was having difficulty (being born.)” He also recorded sewing up a cow that had prolapsed.

We are called “Glass Explorers.” Daigle said they submit the different projects they are using Glass for and everybody shares ideas of what could be done with it.

“Hey you could do this.”

“You could do that.”

“That’s a good idea.”

He said a pilot was using it to make preflight training videos.

When he sees something that comes through the newsfeed he wants to ready later he “saves it to pocket” to read later. He said he could read it through Glass but it would take longer, so he usually saves it to read later on a different device.

“It’s basically a computer, or more like a phone. It does everything a phone would do.”

Daigle said for those that have poor vision and would have a difficult time seeing the Glass without lenses, they can get it with prescription lenses through LensCrafters.

Though Google Glass is not a common sight yet, Daigle said it and other “wearables” will become more common in the future.

“Not just this, Microsoft just bought $1.5 billion worth of patents for wearable ware.”

Daigle talked about a new watch phone that just came out that also monitors your heart and has a pedometer.

“The battery life is the only thing I don’t like. You can’t video very long.”

He said Google Glass is going public in the fall.