ThirdEye X2 Mixed Reality Glasses Get a Facelift

In an otherwise innocuous marketing email sent out this week, ThirdEye Gen, the group behind a range of augmented and mixed reality solutions for consumers and industrial applications, unveiled a brand new look for their latest mixed reality (MR) glasses. The X2 MR glasses, which were first unveiled at CES 2019 earlier this year, have a much more streamlined, albeit boxy, look to them that almost resembles a pair of skiing goggles rather than something that clearly screams bulky tech product.

ThirdEye has come an incredibly far way since its initial product launch a little over a year ago. Heck, they’ve even come a far way in just the two months since first showing off the X2 glasses in Las Vegas. The initial look of the product (pictured below) wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen, but they were certainly a little front heavy and somewhat unstable on the head. Function aside, they had a very industrial look to them, which seemed to fly in the face of their efforts to make this a more user-friendly version of their original smart glasses.

They seem to take a major step forward, though, with this latest iteration of the X2 glasses, which lose the rough edges and awkward curves along the top edge of the product. Instead, the X2 MRs now have an almost sleek look to them with smooth edges, a single piece of glass that covers the entire field of view, and a stylish orange accent around the glass. The arms of the glasses also seem to be sturdier, and they ditch the popped-out ThirdEye logo in favor of one that’s carved into the material.

Available for preorder now with a $1,950 price tag, the X2s will begin shipping this year. They weigh just 6 ounces while offering a display with a 42-degree field of view that’s equivalent to a 90-inch HD screen at 10 feet away, according to ThirdEye. The dual stereoscopic displays each provide 720p resolution at 60 fps, while also having high brightness capabilities that make them efficient to use in indoor and outdoor situations. The glasses are built around ThirdEye’s VisionEye SLAM (simultaneous location and mapping) SDK and the Android 8.0 platform.

In our conversations with ThirdEye, they’ve made clear that the glasses are, at present, best suited for commercial, in-the-field applications. But with developers actively working on their platform to develop new applications for the company’s smart glasses, it’s not hard to imagine that eventually the possible use cases will start to skew more heavily towards the consumer.

Who else killed time this week playing “Where on Google Earth is Carmen Sandiego?”

The classic spy game made its return to the digital realm in a really cool way thanks to Google Earth. If you haven’t seen it yet, do yourself a favor and go spend a few minutes tracking the international criminal and her henchmen.

What We’re Reading

• Facebook is staring down yet another criminal investigation over controversial data sharing deals. (Mashable)
• In the realm of unspeakables tech, this penis camera (no joke) might be one of the worst ideas ever. (CNET)
• The Android Q beta is here for Pixel users who also happen to be the uber-early-adopter type. (The Verge)