South by Southwest has come to be known as one of the greatest merges of music, tech, film, comedy, gaming, and even interactive experiences. South By is becoming more and more one of the “must go” festivals of our time with this year being highlighted by a live Q&A with Elon Musk. So cool! That being said, there’s some news for the audiophile community. Welcome Bose AR Augmented Reality Sunglasses.
Bose AR Augmented Reality Sunglasses
Bose is always working to produce the latest in consumer wearable technology whether it’s different type of noise-cancelling headphones that pull you out of your environment and lock you inside your head with you music or their newly released and in-demand Sleepbuds that’ll help you fall asleep with soothing sounds and a built in alarm. The consumer-based tech giant is now venturing into the world of AR, augmented reality.
Bose AR glasses with Bluetooth capability, combine sound with interactive visuals, but not the kind you find in VR. These sunglasses augment what you hear by providing up to date audible information on what you see through the glasses. Perhaps you’re walking by a monument, audible reenactments will be heard in full 360, for a more realistic sound experience. If you’re passing by a restaurant, the glasses can provide brief history on the establishment, the type of food it serves, wait times, and so forth. Information can be accessed simply by double tapping on the side of the glasses.
The wearable uses sensors to track head motion, and the GPS from an iOS or Android device to track location. The sensors send the motion and location data to a Bose AR-enabled app that aggregates the information, sending relevant, real-time content back to the user’s ears instantly. When it comes to music, Bose AR can put playlists right in front of you, so you can control them with gestures as easily as voice or touch. With the glasses on, you can choose or change your music with simple head nods indicating yes, no, or next.
I’m sure you’re also interested in how you hear this information. The technology employed isn’t bone conduction or tiny earbuds, but rather sound wave projections. The sunglasses project the sound waves directly to your ear canal. Bose adds that the audio quality is top-notch, delivering the Bose sound people have come to love.
At the time, the prototype was unveiled at SXSW. Bose advised they’ll be teaming up with other companies like Yelp and TripAdvisor to add the most up to date information. Bose projects more refined and updated versions of Bose AR glasses will be available in Summer 2018. Sign-up information and details can be found at Developer.Bose.com/Bose-AR.
MajorHiFi may receive commission through retail offers.
Compare the ranking of various headphones, earbuds and in-ear monitors using our tools.
Discuss this, and much more, over on our forum.
---MAJORHIFI may receive commissions from retail offers.
