Google Glass Updated to KitKat in Time for Today's Sale
Google Glass is now running on KitKat.
Google has updated the Google Glass G+ account with information about changes to the product just hours before Glass is unleashed to the masses. The company revealed last week that spots in the Explorer program will be opened up for one day, allowing consumers to sink $1,500 into the tech. The company did not reveal how many spots would be open.
Monday's Google Plus post reveals that the company removed support for video calling. Explorer wearers told the company directly that the feature isn't living up to Google's standards. Furthermore, fewer than 10 percent of the participants actually used this feature. So for now, that feature is no longer accessible to Glass wearers.
"We've made the hard decision to remove video calls from Glass until the experience is better," reads the update. "We don't know when that will be, but in the meantime, keep an eye on MyGlass as more Glassware is built and released – we're already seeing the developer community work on other video streaming services. We've always said that feedback from Explorers shapes Glass, and this is no exception."
In addition to the video call changes, Google Glass is now based on Android "KiKat," which promises better battery life. Developers can also write Glassware using the latest Android SDK, along with new features from Google's GDK. Google also changed the way Explorer wearers can view their photos, organizing them into bundles so that the user swipes less and sees more.
"Photo sharing has been really popular amongst our Explorers, so we've added new ways to send photos in Hangout messages. The next time someone asks "what's up," tap "Reply" and then take a photo to show them. (If you already took the perfect photo, you can still tap to "Send" it in a Hangout message.)," reads the blog.
Other changes to Glass include a better way of sending feedback: tap on the device info card in Settings. Voice commands are now sorted by recency and frequency, making it easier to see the commands Explorer wearers use most often, and faster to access them from the touch menu.
The blog reports that additional changes will be listed in the Glass Journal in the Explorers Community.
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Are you buying Glass today? Why or why not?
Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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gm0n3y I still think that Glass (or future versions of it anyway) is going to change the world at least as much as smartphones have. Once the augmented reality feature start to be fully developed this thing is going to be amazing.Reply
However, at the current price and feature set, this is definitely still in the early adopter phase. It is far to expensive and not nearly ready for mainstream use. -
11796pcs The value just isn't there. Period. It does less than your smartphone for 3x (at least) the money. If it wasn't for R&D, I'm sure Google would be making craploads off of these.Reply