Google Glass failed to pick up momentum as a consumer product, but the wearable is getting a new lease on life in the enterprise segment. Alphabet's X, which oversees the development of Glass, has announced that after two years in a limited trial program, the Glass Enterprise Edition is being rolled out to more businesses.
Glass Enterprise Edition first broke cover back in 2015 in an FCC leak, and the new version has several upgrades over the consumer variant. Alphabet made several improvements to the design and internal hardware, introducing a lightweight model that's more comfortable to wear for a prolonged duration.
Alphabet worked with over "30 expert partners" to tweak the overall design of Glass, with the likes of AGCO, GE, Boeing, DHL, and Volkswagen using the wearable. Glass Enterprise Edition also features a larger display, bigger battery, a faster Atom processor, and a higher-resolution 8MP camera. The hardware itself is detachable, allowing workers to reattach Glass to safety goggles.
Using Glass Enterprise Edition led to a 25% decrease in machinery production time for agricultural equipment manufacturer AGCO:
Workers at AGCO, an agricultural machinery manufacturer in Jackson, Minnesota, are using Glass Enterprise Edition. By reducing the amount of back and forth workers have to do accessing checklists, viewing instruction manuals or sending photos from tablets or laptops as they assemble machines, Glass has reduced machinery production time by 25 percent and inspection times by 30 percent.
Alphabet noted that DHL was able to increase its supply chain efficiency by 15% after turning to Glass, with the wearable also allowing doctors at Dignity Health to double their interaction time with patients. Alphabet is making Glass Enterprise Edition available to more businesses through its partners, and while it's great to see the wearable find its groove in the enterprise, it's unlikely we'll see a consumer-facing variant anytime soon.
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Harish Jonnalagadda is a Senior Editor overseeing Asia at Android Central. He leads the site's coverage of Chinese phone brands, contributing to reviews, features, and buying guides. He also writes about storage servers, audio products, and the semiconductor industry. Contact him on Twitter at @chunkynerd.
