Students Choice

Focals by North

For my viewers choice presentation I would like to speak about Focals by North which is an Augmented Reality enabled glasses. This product is one of the latest players in the AR Glass market. I am particularly intrigued by their implementation of the smart heads up notifications and would like to dwell a little deeper into it. Backed by Intel Capital it will be interesting to see how this product fares, with keeping in mind the success (or lack thereof) of it's predecessors like Google Glass and Intel Vaunt.

Description

North describes Focals as the following "Heads-up access to your digital life without checking your phone. Custom-made glasses with a display only you can see. Instant, yet discreet access to the information you need." Focals allows the notifications be completely discreet by being visible only to the user's who are wearing it. Focals has a full-color retinal projection which provides the illusion of notifications being an arm's length away. Focals' way of interacting with the Augement Reality is through a ring that you wear. The four direction joystick in the ring allows the user to reply with smart replies and emojis, browse through your appointments and also control your turn by turn navigation. The USP of this device is that the user can customize the eye-wear to their choice, and are not limited to the standard "small, medium and large" sizes. It also comes with a companion app that helps the users customize their preferences.

Loop Controller

Retinal Project

Companion App

Reviews by TechCurnch and The Verge

References

1. Focals by North