North’s Focals are the face-mounted display Google Glass should’ve been
Seeing is believing
Not many people were sad to see the back of Google Glass, but if the original wearable had looked more like North’s Focals, perhaps we’d all be scooting around town with clever specs on our noses already. Available in two styles – round or classic – they project a floating screen into the eyeline of the wearer that can show info from a Bluetooth-connected phone, including text messages, sat-nav directions and calendar appointments. Alexa’s also onboard but to actually navigate the Focals’ menus you have to use a separate ring controller, which isn’t as elegant but much more discreet than talking to yourself in the street. The battery lasts 18 hours but they won’t stop working as glasses when it dies. Each pair costs US$999 and is custom made, so if you don’t live near New York or Toronto and can’t go for a fitting, you’ll have to put up with your old Google Glass for that little bit longer.
Tom Wiggins
Contributor