Sony SmartEyeglass Developer Edition Now on Sale in Select Markets

Japanese electronics giant Sony on Tuesday began taking orders for its SmartEyeglass, a Google Glass-like eyewear. The SmartEyeglass Developer Edition SED-E1 smart eyewear will go on sale in eight countries-Japan, the U.S., France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden-next month.

Google Glass was hyped by tech media writers, who called it "the best thing to watch out for". Last month, Google suddenly announced the closure of its Explorer Program, which obviously marked the end of Glass sales.

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The SmartEyeglass Developer Edition SED-E1, meanwhile, is the company's first eyewear to go on sale. The developer edition has a transparent screen in the lenses, meaning you can see features like emails and notifications in front of your eyes. SmartEyeglass connects with a companion smartphone to superimpose information onto the wearer's field of view.

Sony recently said that it will release an upgraded software development kit "to tap into the ingenuity of developers to improve upon the user experience that the SmartEyeglass provides." The company is encouraging developers to make applications for eyewear, before the commercial launch of the device.

In terms of design, at least, Google Glass is much more personified than Sony's chunky eyewear. Unlike Google Glass, Sony's SmartEyeglass needs to connect to a connect with a control unit that holds the battery, speaker, microphone and touch control, notes CNET.

Pre-orders are already open in the UK and Germany. The developer edition will cost $840 in the U.S.

Source - PC World