So what do you think? I'm leaning toward pretty horrible. And in fact, with all of the most promising 3D displays of the next year utilizing active shutter, you'd think that some startup would have learned to make a sleek pair by now, only to be bought by one of the big television companies.

But really, it's not that these glasses are too ridiculous to wear while chucking to your comrades about it; the look just screams "novelty," not "new standard." [aving]

Indeed, not looking like Geordi is a good thing, but the Wrap 310 also features true 16x9 widescreen, twin high resolution displays, noise isolating earphones and compatibility with almost any video player—including the iPod and iPhone. Along those lines, Vuzix notes that the Wrap 310 is also upgradeable with an expansion port that can be used to accommodate changes in player design. Pricing and release information have not been announced.

Vuzix Launches Stylish Wrap™ 310 Widescreen Video Eyewear

Newly updated, sunglass-style form factor improves comfort and style while delivering
true 16 x 9 widescreen video

Experience the technology first hand at the 2009 ShowStoppers for the Digital Holidays
September 16th in New York and the 2009 Tokyo Games Show September 24th – 27th

Rochester, NY – September 15, 2009 – Vuzix Corporation, the leader in video eyewear for the consumer,
defense and low vision markets, is thrilled to launch the Wrap 310. The game-changing Wrap 310 challenges
the status quo of traditional video viewing devices by looking and feeling like normal sunglasses. The Wrap
310 will feature twin high-resolution video displays, project a 55-inch screen and include removable noise
isolating earphones. Powered for up to 6 hours on just 2 AA batteries, the Wrap 310 will accept video from
almost any video player, including the iPod and iPhone.

Whether you are an executive business traveler or want an immersive console gaming experience, the Wrap
310 will get the job done in style. With composite video input and optional VGA and component compatibility
adapters, the Wrap 310 is the most versatile pair of video eyewear on the market. Additionally, as the first
video eyewear designed for upgradeability, the Wrap 310 will feature an expansion port designed to provide
the product with near limitless compatibility. In addition to the soon to be available VGA and Component
adapters, Vuzix has plans for exciting accessories designed to keep the Wrap 310 on the cutting edge.

Please see a complete list of compatible devices below.

"The Wrap 310 is the first device to merge the look of video eyewear and traditional sunglasses into one," said
Vuzix CEO, Paul Travers. "We are excited to be a part of the mobile video revolution and are thrilled to be
globally unveiling the Wrap 310 at Showstoppers for the Digital Holidays and the Tokyo Game Show," added
Travers.

The Wrap 310 also features an improved on-screen user interface, included independent focus adjustments for
users with corrective lenses and still features compatibility with all major 3D video formats. Users now have
the option to select various lens colors to personalize their Wrap 310.

Compatible Devices Include:

• All iPod/iPhone models

• Portable DVD players
• Mobile phones with video output
• PCs and laptops*
• Televisions
• DVD/Blu-Ray players
• Portable media players

*Requires VGA output

[Vuzix]

The glasses implement a sensor that constantly tracks how often you blink. Go just five seconds without blinking your eyes and, BAM, eyeball electrocution the lens fogs over your right eye until you blink again.

But at $150 when they hit this August in Japan, you might want to find a way to file the glasses to your insurance. [Impress Watch via DVICE]

The [CMOS] chip measuring 19.3 by 17 millimeters is fitted on the prototype eyeglasses behind the hinge on the temple. From the temple the image on the microdisplay is projected onto the retina of the user so that it appears to be viewed from a distance of about one meter. The image has to outshine the ambient light to ensure that it can be seen clearly against changing and highly contrasting backgrounds. For this reason the research scientists use OLEDs, organic light-emitting diodes, to produce microdisplays of particularly high luminance.

Wearers could scroll through menus, shift elements and pull up new info by simply focusing on a particular area or moving their eyes in a specific way. The researchers envision this technology proving useful for doctors and engineers somewhere down the line, but you and I both know that if and when something like this becomes readily available, there will be millions of hipster Geordi La Forges out there inundating the world's coffee shops and Apple Stores. [Fraunhofer via Fast Company]

Starting this spring, hipster-fashion-tape-design-company Azumi & David will sell you sunglasses tape. We'd like to believe that the sticky ribbon is merely intended to spruce up a shirt or a bag, you know, with the treasured facade of casually dangling glasses. We'd like to believe that.

But you know what? At minimum, two poor Azumi & David models are penciling in their eye expressions as we speak. [trend de la creme via geekologie]

From Dior, the Blow glasses are a fluorescently fugly take on the future of fashion, debuting in a limited batch of 500 this April. No, they don't contain any special video hud or miniature computer, but no one else needs to know that as you threaten to retaliate to their name calling with mechanically-focused psionic blasts. [Viewon via StyleCrave]

People walking around with headphones and MP3 players/cellphones already aurally isolate themselves from their surroundings, but if personal viewing glasses like the Myvu take off and get really immersive, will we find visual-tainment junkies in rooms like this? [Deviantart]

And these USB glasses celebrate the most famous of fashionable geek icons, the horned rim, by storing 2GB of data in their 2mm frame that doubles as a bookmark. (Sadly, they don't actually work as glasses.) Pick up your pair in March when the they'll be available for $29.

Just keep in mind that if you begin wearing things like short sleeve shirts with ties in any way above the perfect equilibrium of self-deprecating irony, you're in danger of going too nerd. And if you ever go too nerd, even for the briefest of moments, you can never go cool nerd again. It's the way it's always been and always shall be. [imm living via Engadget]

So what is "see-thru" quantum optics anyway?

The stylish Wrap 920AV functions with any media playing device with a video output and projects a virtual 60-inch screen, as viewed from 9-feet. The state-of-the-art lens technology also allows users for the first time to view 3D video content while seeing and interacting with the real world. This incredible blend of reality and computer generated content will transform the world of portable video while opening up the consumer to previously impossible “location aware” applications. An optional 6-Degree of Freedom tracking sensor and/or Stereo Camera Pair will enable users to upgrade their Wrap 920AV to experience virtual, augmented and mixed reality environments.

If the glasses work as advertised, interacting with 3D digital content within a real world landscape might be a big step towards decent, workable virtual reality. Plus, the battery life has been bumped up to around six hours (not to mention a significant reduction in the Geordi factor of the design). The glasses are slated for release in Spring of 2009 at an undisclosed price.

Update: Resolution and aspect ratio are consistent with previous Vuzix versions at 640X480 and 4:3.

Vuzix Announces World’s First Fashionable Sunglass-Style Video Eyewear with Revolutionary “See-Thru” Quantum Optics

Provides a 60-inch private video display complete with Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality capabilities and built-in noise-isolating earphones all in less than 3 ounces

Rochester, NY – January 5th, 2009 – Vuzix Corporation is thrilled to announce a ground-breaking addition to the video eyewear market: the Wrap 920AV. As the demand for mobile access to digital entertainment and information skyrockets, Vuzix has once again pushed the envelope. This portable big screen solution with Vuzix’ proprietary Quantum optics technology allows for a “see-thru” video experience in the form of a functional pair of sunglasses and is upgradeable with optional accessories.

The stylish Wrap 920AV functions with any media playing device with a video output and projects a virtual 60-inch screen, as viewed from 9-feet. The state-of-the-art lens technology also allows users for the first time to view 3D video content while seeing and interacting with the real world. This incredible blend of reality and computer generated content will transform the world of portable video while opening up the consumer to previously impossible “location aware” applications. An optional 6-Degree of Freedom tracking sensor and/or Stereo Camera Pair will enable users to upgrade their Wrap 920AV to experience virtual, augmented and mixed reality environments.

“The Wrap 920AV will not just change the portable video industry, but how consumers view and interact with information,” said Vuzix CEO Paul Travers. “From watching a Civil War video reproduction battle reenactment on the actual battleground to walking through the streets of New York City with an animated virtual tour guide, the possibilities are endless,” added Travers.

“As listed in 2008 at the Gartner Emerging Trends and Technologies Roadshow, Augmented Reality promises a paradigm shift in how consumers interact with news, entertainment and information,” said Vuzix Consumer Division Product Manager Ron Haidenger. “The Wrap 920AV is the first product at a consumer price point to deliver this game changing technology to the masses,” added Haidenger.

Additionally, Vuzix will be offering low cost optional prescription lens inserts to provide the perfect solution for consumers wearing prescription eyeglasses. A patent pending electronic Inter-Pupillary Distance system enables eye separation adjustment, ensuring that all users will have an optimal viewing experience. Amazingly, the entire system weighs less than 3 ounces.

The Wrap 920AV’s features include:

• Virtual 60-inch screen viewed from 9-feet
• 2D and 3D video formats
• Quantum Optics Technology
• Twin high-resolution AMLCD displays
• Ultra low power electronics
• High-quality noise-isolating and removable comfort fit earphones
• Up to 6 hours of battery life on two AA batteries
• On screen display settings control
• For use with or without eyeglasses
• Optional prescription lens inserts
• Optional Bluetooth 6-Degree of Freedom head tracking system
• Optional USB-powered Stereo Camera Pair

Compatible devices include:

• All iPod/iPhone models with video output
• Portable media players
• Video cameras
• Cellular phones with video output
• Console video game systems
• Digital cameras
• DVD players
• PCs & laptops with S-Video

The Wrap 920AV will be available on Vuzix.com and through various other distribution channels in Spring 2009.

The no-optician-required glasses rely on the principle that the fatter a lens is, the more powerful it comes, so by pumping in or sucking out fluid, the glasses can be instantly tailored to the right strength. They're so simple to adjust that practically anyone can do it. So far the only complaint with the glasses is that they're kind of ginormous—which kind of goes with having specs that operate on the coke-bottle glasses principle and have a fluid-filled membrane sitting in the middle of the lens.

Silver is planning a trial in India that will distribute over 1 million of the glasses, which he hopes to have strapped to the heads over a billion of the world's poorest people—at a cost of $1 per pair—by the poetic date of 2020. Luckily for him, giant glasses are ironically cool again, so he could probably launch a Get 1, Give 10 style program funded entirely by hipsters . [Guardian via MAKE]

Apparently, the Wrao 920AV will be "the first to actually function as sunglasses or portable video eyewear. It’ll combine virtual reality (VR) capabilities as well as augmented reality (AR) features." Holy crap that is awesome. We have enjoyed Vuzix products in the past, but these things have us giddy with excitement. [Vuzix]

That's the bit of your eyesight that doesn't capture too much detail but does excellently at detecting motion...so the extra data hopefully wouldn't be too distracting. Essentially its a clever way of augmenting your normal checking of the road, and avoiding being side-swiped by a fast-moving vehicle that was sitting outside your normal vision zones.

Simple and blindingly obvious, when you think about it... and could have potential uses in all sorts of places. I know it'd help with my skiing... or at least would've helped me avoid that dumb snowboarder who knocked me flat last year when he wasn't watching where he was going. Hopefully it's a concept that'll be a reality soon.

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]