So the Google’s Project Glass from the other day is not just a concept. Google’s already testing some prototypes and co-founder Sergey Brin has been snapped wearing it at a charity function. According to Robert Scoble, the glasses seemed “very light looking” and had a bluish light flashing off that supposedly gave out some type of information.

We’re still years away from finding it in retail but one thing’s for sure, the future is exciting.

[Via Google+]

Google is looking to give augmented reality a big boost with the Project Glass project they just revealed. It involves user wearing a display that will allow them to do a multitude of things like setting up appointments, receive a video call, get directions, check out the reviews of a particular place and a lot more.

This tech is being developed by the Google[x] team and is safe to say that the commercialization of this tech is years away. Check out the video of the potential of the technology below.

Google Project Glass

Kinect-powered hacks are not new but this Kinect hack developed by a team of Indian engineers is pretty unique and helpful to the visually impaired. Dubbed as viSparsh, it’s a haptic belt that detects obstacles and vibrates so as to signify oncoming obstacles to the visually impaired.

Basically, the Kinect sensor attached to the belt becomes the eyes for the wearer and transmits signals to the vibration motors, depending on the distance of the obstacle as well as its location.

Here’s a 9-minute video that shows how the device works.

viSparsh

[Thanks, Rakesh!]

Transparent display market is estimated to grow big in the next few years and to cash in on the upcoming technology, Samsung has announced to mass produce its second and a larger transparent display from this month. The new 46-inch transparent displays will complement Samsung’s existing 22-inchers which can be used for various purposes like showcasing products, using it as a freezer door, information kiosk, medical equipment and more.

On the technical front, the 46-inch transparent display supports a resolution of 1366×768 pixels, has a contrast ratio of 4500:1 and a color gamut of 70 percent.

Samsung at the Q3 2011 earnings call today spilled some important details regarding flexible displays. Samsung executive confirmed that they’re planning to roll out the first-generation flexible display in 2012, possibly in the first half.

More importantly, Samsung also divulged the device that will sport such display, which will be a mobile phone. Tablets and other mobile devices will be migrated later on.

[Via Sammy Hub]

Shopping carts are generally used to lug around all the shopped goods but with the new Smart Cart from SK Telecom, the age-old cart will be able to do a lot more. Undergoing as a pilot test in China’s Shanghai Lotus Supermarket Chain Store, the Smart Cart works with the help of a smartphone and a shopping cart equipped with a tablet PC to show various shopping-related information.

After installing the app in the smartphone, a user can search for products, coupons as well as create a shopping list. The information on the phone can then be synced with the Smart Cart which can be used to get product information, offers or receive coupons using augmented reality. The Smart Cart uses indoor positioning technology to give consumers real-time information inside the store and also facilitates during check out by showing the purchased items etc.

SK Telecom will also pilot test the Smart Cart in South Korea soon.

[Thanks, Louise!]

Global System for Mobile communications or fondly called as GSM has completed two decades of its service today. The GSM standard first came into existence in 1991 where the very first call was made between Finland’s former prime minister, Harri Holkeri, and the mayor of Tampere, Kaarina Suonio over a network jointly developed by Telenokia and Siemens Network (present day Nokia Siemens Network).

GSM as we know now has garnered more than 4.2 billion subscribers and is also the foundation of many new technology standards like EDGE, 3G and LTE.

[Via Nokia Conversations]

Sony today announced that they’ve developed an integrated Augmented Reality technology dubbed as Smart AR. Although we already have some AR solutions, Sony prides its tech by combining object recognition technology and own 3D space recognition technology, which was used in Sony robots like AIBO and QRIO.

Smart AR allows objects to be recognized and tracked at high-speed and also display virtual objects or additional image or text information over the real-life image.

Sony will showcase the technology from tomorrow till May 22 in the Sony Building in Ginza (Tokyo).

Press Release

LG’s display making subsidiary, LG Display has announced that they’ll showcase their full range of Advanced High Performance In-Plane Switching (AH-IPS) products at the SID 2011 expo that begins on May 15. LG is trying to play coy by not mentioning the exact resolution but has confirmed to show the panels for different sizes – 3.5-inch and 4.5-inch for smartphones, 7-inch and 9.7-inch for tablets and 55-inch and 84-inch for TVs.

According to LG Display, AH-IPS is the successive form of IPS that enables 1.5 to 2 times of resolution than conventional LCD panels, improved color accuracy and greater light transmission making it more power efficient.

LG Display already produces a 3.5-inch IPS panel with 960×640 which is used by Apple in its iPhone 4 and iPod touch devices.

Toshiba’s Mobile Display arm has created a new 7-inch low-temperature poly-silicon (LTPS) TFT LCD display that enables multi-touch input without the need to install an additional touch panel. The screen is developed for vehicle-mounted and industrial devices and integrates touch panel function by forming display pixel electrodes, thus reducing thickness by 57 percent and weight by 48 percent as compared to conventional LCDs.

The panel will be showcased at SID 2011 International Symposium in USA in May.

[Via Electronista]