NEW BMW ConnectedRide HUD smart sunglasses have been launched, specifically aimed at bikers and landing in dealerships soon for £590.
The ConnectedRide specs are BMW’s take on the Google Glass idea, in that they are connected sunglasses with a head-up display (HUD) that can provide the wearer with information from their smartphone. Not only does the new tech hook up to your phone, but it can also talk to (or receive information from) the bike if it’s compatible, meaning things like the bike’s speed, gear selection and more can be provided to the rider. On top of this, the new system can feed turn-by-turn navigation to the rider along with call and text notifications.
Riders can even tailor the system to provide them with more or less information, something that should help the more easily distracted riders out there.
The system seems quite similar to the Google Glass concept which did go down as a bit of a failure for the technology giant. From looking at the tech and features of the new specs, it seems that all the ConnectedRide doesn’t do that Google Glass did is capture images and video from the wearers-eye-view.
The other stumbling block that many riders will have is, as if often the way, the price. At a shade under £600, the new connected BMW specs are a pricey piece of kit. When a Bluetooth-connected helmet from an already established name costs a similar amount of money, you do have to question how much demand there will be for the new product.
