Google has published a long post in his social network profile in which he debunks the most common myths regarding Google Glass.
Here is the list with the myths and their answer to debunk them:
1.- It is a distraction from the real world.
Glass allows you to live a normal life while using it, something that does not happen when looking at a computer, mobile phone or tablet. They help capture any moment, but we can turn them off whenever we want.
2.- They are always recording everything.
As on mobile phones, the Google Glass screen is disabled by default. Automatic video recording is set to a maximum duration of 10 seconds. It can record for longer, but it is not designed to be recording always (the battery would not last more than 45 minutes before needing to be charged).
3.- The explorers (those who use them experimentally) They are crazy about technology.
Explorers are normal people from different professions: parents, firefighters, zookeepers, film students, journalists, doctors... The only thing they have in common is that they use technology to improve their work. In fact, many explorers say that since using Google Glass, they are using the technology less because they are using it much more efficiently.
4.- It's ready.
The product is still being polished to be able to launch it on the consumer market. For now they are a prototype and both the explorers and the people who test them are playing a fundamental role in their development. In the last 11 months, nine updates have been made and the hardware has been improved up to three times. In the future, what is a prototype today will seem as fun to us as mobile phones seemed to us in the mid-80s.
5.- It has facial recognition.
Although it could technically be done, the decision has been made not to include any program that recognizes people. All apps are manually approved to help protect the safety of people with the device.
6.- Annoying to the eyes.
The screen appears on the right side, not on top. It was designed this way because of the importance of being able to look each other in the eye and up in the real world, rather than down at the phone.
7.- The perfect surveillance device.
If someone wanted to secretly record you it would be best not to have clearly visible glasses on, as they light up when turned on. For this, there are many better cameras. If you wanted to make a spy device, you would have done better than with Glass.
8.- It is only for the privileged few.
The current prototype costs 1.500 dollars (1.088 euros) and it is true that it is out of reach of many people. But this does not mean that it will only be for the rich. In many cases they have bought them at work, others have raised the money on Kickstarter or Indiegogo to develop applications. For others, it has been a gift.
9.- It is prohibited everywhere.
Since mobile phones have existed, there have been some prohibitions for anyone who wants to record (locker rooms, casino rooms, etc.) Since the functionality of Google Glass is like that of a mobile phone, the same rules apply. And, by the way, they can be used with contact lenses.
10.- The end of privacy.
When cameras hit the consumer market in the 19th century, people declared the end of private life. Cameras were banned in parks, national monuments and beaches. People feared the same thing when the first camera phones came out.
Today there are more cameras than ever. In ten years there will be even more cameras, with or without Google Glass. 150 years after the appearance of cameras and eight after YouTube, we know that people record and save everything, from cats to reports of environmental destruction, falls of governments or great achievements of Humanity.
