Gizmodo: Glasses

What All Glasses Will Look Like in 2020

Mark Wilson — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 11:00:00 EDT

The latest in designer eyewear, these just-announced, newly-patented "Avant-garde Frames" reduce the strain of glasses that generally pinch your nose and weigh down your ears. By shifting the support to a headband-like contraption, the glasses can hang over your eyes without imposing upon delicate surround tissue or muscles—especially important while jogging. They may look funny to you now, but we're pretty sure headphones looked silly once upon a time, too. Inventor Huang Mei only requires someone to purchase his patents to roll these babies into mass production.

Lightning Review: Gunnar Optiks Eye Strain-Reducing Computer Glasses

Jason Chen — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 12:00:00 EDT

The Gadget: A pair of yellow-tinted glasses you wear at the computer that claim to reduce "Digital Eye Fatigue" and "Computer Vision Syndrome." In other words, they get rid of eye strain and headaches related to eye strain. It also claims to give you "sharper, clearer vision," as well as improve your performance because "the eyes are relaxed." How? By "improving eye focus, reducing glare and blocking artificial light."

The Price: The price is variable, but a random sampling of different frame types cost anywhere between $99 at the low end and nearly $200 at the high end. The bulk of the frames, however, land somewhere in between. Ours, the Wi-Five, cost $139.

The Verdict: It actually works. The curvature and wrapping of the lenses around your eyes cause some slight distortion when you're turning your head or using your peripheral vision (a.k.a. early boss, wife or mom warning system), which takes a short while to get used to. Our first try was met with slight nausea within a few minutes. We persevered, despite everything looking (and maybe even smelling and tasting) a urine-yellow.

We don't normally experience eye-strain when at the computer, so when we wore the Gunnars for a solid day of blogging—from start to finish—we didn't experience any clearer vision or performance gain that we could tell. But that's like trying to sell someone a whistle that prevents tiger attacks and claiming it works when there haven't been any tiger attacks. In NYC. Downtown. At Bloomingdale's.

However, when we donned the specs after we already had pain in one or more of our eyeballs and/or a headache, we found that the Gunnars really did work to take away the discomfort. We didn't put them on and lie down either; we sat in front of our five-display setup and did full-on blogging.

We're not sure how it works, or if it will work for everybody, but if you're a frequent sufferer of computer-related eye strain, $100+ is a small price to pay for something that at the very least helps you work for a few more hours without sticking a fruit knife in your temple. The downside is that you look may look like a dork when wearing them depending on which pair you choose, but I look like a dork all the time, so I DON'T CARE. [Gunnar Optiks]

Who Cares What These Glasses Do, They Make for a Great Picture

Mark Wilson — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:40:00 EDT

What a fantastic photograph. We could tell you the mundane truth behind what these glasses really are and what they really do, but let's not spoil it. Let's just enjoy a moment of unadulterated imagination by staring at these electronic clouds, molding them to any purpose we like. [ladyada's tea party via MAKE]

3D Drawing Pad Makes Your Dirty Doodles Come Alive

Benny Goldman — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 21:30:00 EDT

With the 3D drawing pad, your ugly scribbles will look like high-tech masterpieces. The paper on the pad has a special background that makes black pencil marks appear 3-dimensional when seen through those classic blue-and-red specs. A pack of 50 sheets (with glasses) is only $4, an awesome deal if it really works. I know what you're thinking, but I'm more mature than that. I would use my 3D pad to draw ripe, juicy watermelons and big, long rocket ships. [Product page via Coolest Gadgets]

Seven Deadly Glasses Will Tease, Tempt You With Sinful Wine

Kit Eaton — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:45:00 EDT

In vino peccatus... perhaps the saying should go like this, given the kind of hangover a bottle of wine can result in. And designer Kacper Hamilton might well agree. His Seven Deadly Glasses wine glasses are meant to physically represent each sin. So there's the phallic Pride glass, contrasting with the curly Greed glass—that hangs on to a few sips in its tentacles—and Sloth, which needs someone else to drip-feed you the good stuff. Check out the gallery to see the full range of designs: they're pretty intriguing.

Each glass's sin is "revealed through the ritual of drinking," says Kacper, adding that the glasses are designed to encourage "the user to be sinful in a theatrical fashion." Presumably throwing up theatrically after imbibing too much is entirely up to you, with no help from art or design.

If you're in London between June 12th and 19th, you can see the glasses being exhibited at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design Degree Show. And if you like them, you can order one of the limited edition sets. They come in a mahogany, velvet and brass case, so expect the price to be pretty sinful too. [Kacper Hamilton via Dezeen via Notcot]

Sony Video Glasses Will Turn Everyone Star Trek Chic

Elaine Chow — Sat, 24 May 2008 15:30:00 EDT

Answering Mark's prayers and bringing us all one step closer to looking like Geordi La Forge, Sony has unveiled eyeglasses that can show full-color video images. The prototype supports a QVGA resolution, weighs 120g, is 3mm thick at the lens, and has a contrast ratio of 50:1.

The glasses use a proprietary holographic waveguide and an optical engine made up of a LED light source and a transparent LCD panel. Video coming from the optical engine is reflected by a film in the holographic waveguide. It then bounces off a glass plate and is diffracted to the eyes by a second holographic film.

Before it brings the glasses to market, Sony is trying to slim the prototype down to 80g and make the lenses transmissive enough to be used in dark places. The company says it's hoping to commercialize the produce by 2010. [Tech ON]

i-Bean Head Mounted Video System Puts a Display on Your Glasses

Haroon Malik — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 06:25:00 EDT

Haven't you always wanted your Armani shades to have an inbuilt TV display, of 21-inch effective size at 1-meter distance? Well, thank the heavens for the i-Bean, as it will grab onto any of your shades with sucker mounts and do exactly that. Sure, it may weigh you down an extra 10g, and will set you back $385, but think about the geek chic factor. The i-Bean comes equipped with a TV tuner that can operate with either 3 AAA batteries or via AC power, so you can now have Desperate Housewives on the bus, which is no way as cool as it sounds. [Red Ferret]

Fat Shark Wireless RC Glasses Let You See Through Your Car In First Person

Jason Chen — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 12:14:27 EDT

We were too poor to play with RC cars when we were kids, but it seems like it was worth the wait in order for these Fat Shark Wireless RC Glasses to be invented. Strap the glasses on your face and you'll be able to see through the actual head of the RC driver. Better yet, the head can pivot and tilt so you're not always looking straight ahead in front of the car. We only wish it would be adapted for Top Gun 2008, the end result of which would be tons and tons of "pilots" puking on the ground. Video (of the ground model) after the jump. [Hobby Media]

Weight Loss Sunglasses Make Your Food Look Gross so You Won't

Adam Frucci — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:10:48 EDT

If diets have just never worked for you due to your lack of self-control and your love of all things buttery, maybe it's time for some stupider methods of weight loss. Enter the Weight Loss Sunglasses. Yep, these guys are tinted blue, the "least appetizing color of the spectrum," sure to make that ice cream sundae sitting in front of you look downright disgusting. For only $18.75, I don't know how you can say no. [Product Page via Book of Joe]

Eyes-on With Lumus Minority Report Projection Glasses

Jason Chen — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 19:09:52 EST

The Pitch: Glasses that project a transparent virtual interface directly into your eyes, essentially bringing to life all heads-up user interface designs from every Sci-Fi show ever.

The Catch: It's not a real product yet (just a reference design), and it needs some kind of other gadget (phone, PDA, computer) to plug into to drive the display. Cool, but too far in the future. [Thanks to Sarah Meyers]

MyVu Crystal & Shades Pay Homage To Sci-Fi Vision

Christopher Mascari — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 18:09:30 EST

Sci-Fi eyewear lovers are finally getting more options when shopping for new shades with MyVu's release of two new models, Shades and Crystal. Both models are geared toward watching video on the go, with what MyVu describes as "glance-down technology with true situational awareness." With this "glance-down tech" these glasses are even closer to mimicking their Sci-Fi alter-egos, as you might have see on IO9's Gallery of Sci-Fi Vision Systems. We had our own Benny Goldman testing out the new models, and sadly he didn't have many words of praise.

Benny stated, "the new glasses we're nauseating" with regards to the glance-down viewing, but he did report decent comfort when wearing. Each model features a brand new design and new specs over their older Edge model. The biggest difference is in the displays, since the Crystal features a new VGA display that provides the best video among the other models and the Shades has the same QVGA display that are in the old Edge model, so video doesn't look that great. Both feature rechargeable batteries and integrated in-ear ear buds, with the Shades having a 10-hour viewing time, as opposed to only four hours on the Crystal.

Both models are available in three weeks with various colors, making you look way better than Wesley Snipes in any of his Sci-Fi flicks. [MyVu]

Convertible Glasses Give You Two Styles in One

Sean Fallon — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 18:00:00 EST

If you are as blind as I am, you have probably noticed that glasses are outrageously expensive. Naturally, that means that style often takes a back seat to price when picking up frames. The "Switch Glasses" concept by Hyo-Jong Kim aims to change all that with lenses that can be spun around for two distinct looks.

That means you can wear a conservative style to work that says "I am an intelligent individual that should be taken seriously," and flip the frames around on Friday night to reveal a style that says "get a few beers in me and I'll run through this bar naked. Are you calling me a liar? I'll punch you in the face right now." Again, it is only a concept at this point, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it at a Lens Crafters sometime in the not too distant future. [Yanko Design via Sci Fi Tech]

Your Nose Knows the Silhouette Wine Glass Works

Charlie White — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 11:20:00 EDT

Winos are going to love the Silhouette, the wine glass that lets you bury your nose in that heady aroma of the vine. After all, a large percentage of the oenophile's pleasure is in the "nose" of the stuff, which means "the smell factor" to the rest of us rotgut drinkers. So go ahead, get your nose right up in there and fully enjoy the wine tasting experience.

This cutout design will let you tilt that sucker all the way up to your forehead. If that's not tasteful, I don't know what is. The only problem? Each one of these ordinary wine glasses with a chunk bitten out of them will drain you of a castle-temperature $54, and that kinda stinks. [Greatest Wine Glass]

Tiny Glasses TV Turns Japanese Commuters Into Zombies

Jason Chen — Tue, 22 May 2007 17:40:07 EDT

Taking more than just a few pages from Snow Crash, this Teleglass T3-F eyeglasses add-on does for video what iPods have done for audio—namely, allow you to watch it anywhere.

By clipping the video display to your eyeglasses, you can watch video from your iPod or other portable display device in one eye while supposedly paying attention to what you're doing with the other. Although that's technically good, we still don't want to see how many Japanese commuters accidentally step onto the tracks when watching this. At $820, it's an expensive way to die. – Jason Chen

Today Show [via Local 6]

Subtitle-Reading Glasses Make Cinema-Going for the Hard of Hearing Less, um, Hard

www.gizmodo.com — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 09:41:03 EDT

Here's something that could be a godsend for the hard of hearing who feel they are not getting their money's worth in the movie theater. A nifty little idea thought up by some clever people at Madrid's Carlos III University for the Spanish Center for Subtitles and Closed Captions, this gadget fixes onto a person's glasses to give them access to subtitles—even in a subtitle-free showing.

The technology is simple: There is a computer in the cinema that emits the subtitles to within 50 meters, and also deals with their synchronization. A receptor in the glasses captures the signal and projects it onto the microscreen, which fits over the right-hand lens. It's easy as pie to use—one button turns the gadget on and off and another one restarts it. – Ad Dugdale

Gafas con subtitulos a la carta [El Mundo]

Steampunk Specs Would Make Ben Franklin Proud

Travis Hudson — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 16:15:24 EDT

, Benjamin Franklin was a lover of all things steampunk, so these spectacles would definitely tickle him pink. They are spring-loaded out the wazoo would definitely give the wearer instant sex appeal. These glasses are the work of deviantart user Y4G3R. –Travis Hudson

Mechanical spectacles [Via BoingBoing]

Lumus PD-20: I See We're Getting Closer

Mark Wilson — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 17:45:20 EDT

The Lumus PD-20 aren't quite the Holy Grail of video glasses, but they are a small to mid-sized step in the proper direction. Instead of looking at the actual image source (coming from that box on the frame), wearers view a reflection from the Light-guide Optical Element (LOE) placed in direct eye view.

In other words, any technology can be used for the initial display (such as LCD or OLED), while tiny, transparent paneling (LOE) works as a mini projector screen, shining the image properly back to your eye. This setup allows for complete peripheral/frontal vision, as well as the potential (now I'm reaching a bit) to upgrade the source microdisplay as technologies improve. And you don't look like you are on your way to a Star Trek convention...every day.

Late last year, Lumus announced VGA resolutions in their eyewear. What we need is for the big boy companies, like cellphone display manufacturers, to get in on the mix. Then, finally, we can watch cartoons all day and claim it's our prescription. – Mark Wilson

Product Page [via randomgoodstuff]

3D Doodle Kit and Glasses (The Red and Blue Kind)

Brian Lam — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:37:19 EDT

I'm the only Chinese guy I know who can't draw, but maybe you can. And maybe you can put this 3D sketch kit, which includes a pair of glasses and locked red and blue pencils. The 2005 kit just went for sale at the NY/Online MOMA store. Then again for 7 bucks, maybe I should pick one up to turn my scraggly 2D stick figures into stereographic ones.–Brian Lam

3D Doodle Kit [MOMA]

Crazy Glasses Give You Super-8 Camera Vision

Brian Lam — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:58:45 EST

Cory D. at Boing Boing recommends these handmade wood-framed glasses that give you the low-fi perspective of a Super-8 camcorder. The blue and green tinted lenses are fuzzy, to match the old film format's color range, and give it a bit of that vasoline-on-the-lens effect. The fold down steel covers are pinhole'd to mime the aperture's depth of field, or something. It's in a limited edition of one, and one only.–Brian Lam

Nizo Glasses [via Cory at Boingboing]

Shocker Glasses Punish Your Drowsiness

Adam Frucci — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 09:53:52 EST

Man, I'm tired. I need to start going to bed earlier so I don't feel like I'm about to fall asleep at my keyboard in the morning. What I need are a pair of these Vision Optic MyDo Bururu (what?) glasses. No, not because my vision is poor — 20/15, bitches — but because these glasses are designed to shock you awake when you're nodding off.

They detect your level of wakefulness via the angle of your head, which seems to me like a pretty crappy way to judge whether or not someone is awake. What happens when you look down to wash your hands or make a sandwich? You get zapped by your glasses? No thanks, especially not for $370. –Adam Frucci

Plastic Bamboo [via CrunchGear]

First Person Shooter Glasses

Jason Chen — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 19:30:06 EDT

Oh yeah, Jack Thompson is going to love these glasses that make it seem like you're in a First Person Shooter all the time. Is it me or is the gun on the wrong side?– Jason Chen

First Person Shooter [via Screenhead]

Design: Optigami Folding Glasses

Jason Chen — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 18:39:54 EDT

This design for a pair of foldable glasses may look a little bulky, but it more than makes up for that in convenience. After you take off the glasses, the lenses fold neatly into the sides, which contract to form a hard case that you can place into your pocket. No more putting your glasses into your shirt pocket only to have them get smashed when some jerkface bumps into you on the street.

These glasses are called "Optigami", combining "optical" and "origami". Since this is just a design, there's no telling whether it'll get turned into an actual product or not. But enterprising DIY'ers could try making their own out of duct tape and chicken wire. – Jason Chen

OPTIGAMI [RKSDesign via Coolest Gadgets]

Glare-proof Glasses From 1932

Jason Chen — Sat, 08 Jul 2006 18:16:38 EDT

Anyone who doesn't chuckle at this image ad for glare-proof glasses is dead inside, possibly due to childhood trauma or too much Suddenly Susan reruns.

HEADLIGHT glare from approaching cars is practically eliminated by the cup-shaped aluminum shields shown on the left, which fasten onto regular spectacle frames.
Holes are cut a little to the right of the apex of the cones, which are one inch deep. When meeting a car, driver turns his head slightly to the right. This automatically cuts off the glare from the lights and enables him to watch the side of the road.

Holes in the sides of the cups aid wearer in watching cars at intersections.

If you're looking for current eye-wear we'll laugh at in 70 years, might we suggest the Oakley Over the Tops? – Jason Chen

Glare-proof Glasses [Modern Mechanix via Digg]

22Moo iPod Video Glasses

johnb — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 09:22:34 EDT

Many, you can put iPod in any old press release and it instantly becomes fanboy gold. This set of "VR" glasses creates a screen 6 feet in front of you and potentially makes you sick as a dog. The VG-SD+USB will connect to the UHMP-001 USB host adapter which turns and iPod, not just the video, into a mass storage device. The adapter then plays any video files found on the iPod's hard drive. You can't spell kludge without "you," 22Moo!

The glasses are $250 and the full system, with adapter, should be $350. Looks like it's Australia only, but I'm sure they'll send some over to us later. – John Biggs

Release [22Moo]

Golf Ball-Finding Glasses

Travis Hudson — Wed, 24 May 2006 16:48:59 EDT

You probably own tons of high-tech golf accessories, but they probably haven't improved your game much. This gadget may be the most useful. While other golf accessories try to help your game, Hammacher Schlemmer knows how bad your slice is and has some glasses that assist in finding lost golf balls.

They work by blocking out 90 percent of long-wavelength colors such as browns and greens while allowing the short-wavelength colors such as white and yellow to pass through. Also when scanning wide distances these glasses filter out many of the objects, therefore making it easier on the brain to pinpoint the lost ball.

Product Page [Via Ubergizmo]

Myvu Reviewed (Verdict: Better than Geordi's)

Jason Chen — Tue, 16 May 2006 17:40:31 EDT

Mobility Site tried on the Myvu personal video player down at the lake—where nobody could laugh at them—and came back pleased. Wearing these felt just like wearing sunglasses that take 3 AAA batteries.

The video is 320x240 on a 4:3 aspect ratio, and felt like watching a 30" screen from a meter or so away. The resolution is perfect for an iPod video, but may not be great when watching higher quality DVDs. The battery life was "excellent", but they didn't specify exactly how long it lasted. Most likely longer than the iPod Video's battery life.

Available now for $269.

Update: Reader Daniel informs us that the article did say the battery life was 6 hours. We blame ecstasy.

mvyu - a personal media viewer [Mobility Site]

Kowon LCD DMB Glasses: Definitely Not for Porn

johnb — Wed, 10 May 2006 16:40:09 EDT

Kowon is now shipping personal TV glasses that create a 32-inch screen 6 feet in front of the viewer. While these things have historically caused all sorts of pukiness, these glasses apparently work quite well. Dual 320x240 LCD screens and a stereo headset means you can look like a freak and watch the World Cup on the train without some jerk looking over your shoulder.

They will cost $216 and pick up DMB and DVB-H digital broadcasts. Should be available in Europe soon and the US never.

Kowon readies anti-glance LCD glasses [RegHardware]

Video Spy Glasses, a Surefire Way To Make New Friends

Gizloco — Mon, 01 May 2006 14:19:04 EDT

Listen up, Richard Nixon wannabes. Now you're able to record everything that you see with these incredibly inconspicuous video spy glasses. There's a built-in CCD color camera, giving you, Mr. Paranoid, a respectable 92 degree viewing angle. It's powered by eight AAA batteries and has 350 lines of resolution. Paranoia comes at a price, however, and these glasses run at about $600. They also come with a one year warranty, just in case your sneaking missions go awry.

Product Page [SpyGear4U via Me, My Coke & I]

Liquid-Crystal Switchable Focus Eyeglass Lenses

gizmodo.com — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 15:53:31 EDT

If you're cursed with bifocals or fear they're in your future, you'll be glad to know optical scientists at the University of Arizona have been working on liquid-crystal eyeglass lenses that can switch focus on command.

The technology is still fairly clunky and the lenses don't auto-focus yet, but when the lenses have slimmed down and can focus automatically, bifocals will become a thing of the past—and you won't have to change lenses whenever you get new prescriptions either, since the doctor will be able to enter the new ones into your glasses. A firm called Pixel Optics is working on commercializing the idea now, after buying the patents from Johnson and Johnson Development Corp, which licensed them from the University and funded their research.

UA Optical Scientists Develop Switchable Focus Eyeglass Lenses [uaews.org]
Liquid-crystal eyeglasses make bifocals obsolete [SciFi Tech]

Sommelier Wine Glass Plays Down Your Hoity-Toity Instincts

Charlie White — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 10:13:52 EST

There's a bit of subtle humor in these hand-blown Sommelier Wine Glasses, replicas of those everyday plastic cups that are handed out at keggers and beer bashes in trailer parks and college campuses all over the world.

Only difference is, these have a stem, and they're intricately crafted in ~~Czechoslovakia~~ the Czech Republic of artisan glass instead of plastic, a creation of artist Maxim Velcovsky. Your guests may not get the humor until you tell them that each glass costs $43. Ironic.

Product page [via productdose]

ICUITI Video Glasses

Gizloco — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 08:41:30 EST

Video glasses have never grown past the novelty stage (with consumers at least). But since people will apparently buy anything that is an iPod accessory, manufacturers are trotting out these gadgets and marketing them as a way to watch (mobile) video. Enter the DV920 from ICUITI. The 640 x 480 pixel resolution glasses support both 2D and 3D stereoscopic viewing. Two AA batteries power the 42 virtual screen for 2.5 to 4.5 hours. The glasses themselves weigh only 3.8 oz., but as with any visor, it's a question of comfort. This pair will set you back some $549. No word on whether the pictured model is included.

ICUITI DV920 Video Glasses Shipping - Work with iPod Video [I4U News]

Splitfish 3D Glasses for PS2, Reviewed

tgrumet — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 11:26:08 EST

Before we have to pretty much stop talking about the Playstation 2 forever, we figured we'd get this review of the Splitfish eyeFX 3D Adapter and 3D glasses up and out. Looks like this product actually gets existing PS2 games to display shifted images, making them look 3D when viewed through the 3D glasses. Though the product doesn't work with every PS2 game, it does work with faves like 007 Agent Under Fire, Ace Combat 04, Aero Elite, Colosseum, DNA, DropShip, Half-Life, Kill Switch, Lara Croft Tomb Raider, Star Wars Bounty Hunter, Thunder Strike, Timesplitters 1&2 and Top Gun. Check the full list out at Splitfish. The unit plugs between the PS2 controller and the main unit and unfortunately, the glasses only work with CRT TVs. So if you're upgraded to, you know, a normal TV, you're out of luck. The glasses are super stylish, and I for one intend to wear them at my South Hampton manse next summer. The viewing angle is a wee-bit small, so it's best to sit close to the TV like a 6-year-old when wearing these babies. With some games, you can actually see the front and back view of the screen at the same time, which could be good or bad, depending on how much your brain can take in. Conclusion? It's certainly something new to play with and looks pretty cool but as mentioned, it does only work with limited games. Goes for about $69.95.

Splitfish eyeFX 3D Adapter for Sony Playstation 2 Review [i4u]

Martini Rose Glass

Travis Hudson — Thu, 11 Aug 2005 11:49:54 EDT

A divine night full of sweet romance between two people is a time to remember. What sparks this delightful evening? Spirits served in two delicate rose shaped martini glasses. Each delicate martini is consumed with utmost class and sophistication. Everything is perfect. As she stumbles her way to the bathroom and disappears, cracking both glasses on the marble floor of the restaurant, a few small words ruin the entire night of romance that was sparked by those selfsame rose shaped martini glasses: "$600 please." Hey, at least you can look forward to day two of the Battlestar Galactica convention tomorrow.

Martini Rose Glass [Yanko Design]

eBay Deal of the Day: Bug-eye Glasses

johnb — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 15:56:39 EDT

I'm not quite sure what these are for but they're quite handsome. I suspect Bono would look great in them belting out a few bars of "One" while he and the Edge count the money they could be sending to homeless orphans. Otherwise, I think they'll make mere mortals look kind of short-bus-y, kind of like the Slow Cousin of the Fly.

Vintage Antique Glasses Bug Eye Fly 1/10 12KGF NR