Journalist Kyle Russell says he has had a Google Glass, one of which he is wearing, ripped off his face and smashed. Photo sourced from Twitter. Source: Supplied
GOOGLE Glass promises its wearers instant access to a world of virtual reality, but some early adopters of the latest wonder from Silicon Valley are finding it can also draw them into a real world of muggers and privacy campaigners.
Google put the internet connected spectacles on sale in the US for one day only last week for $US1500 ($1608) ahead of their general release in the country later this year.
Police warned those who snapped them up to watch out for muggers and also for members of a growing “tech rage” movement who have ripped the glasses from the faces of those wearing them in public.
Google Glass arouses especially strong feelings in the Bay Area of San Francisco, where Google built the prototype in 2011: today's version is more sleek but still lacks a “kill switch” or tracking device if it is stolen.
Last week, a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department, which says one-third of street robberies involve the snatching of tech devices, said Google Glass was a target because it could be resold quickly.
The device also evokes strong political reactions, now known as “Glass warfare”.
Last week, Kyle Russell, a reporter with Business Insider, a US website, said his Google glasses had been snatched from his face and smashed to the ground during an anti-Google demonstration in San Francisco.
Russell added that, in retrospect, wearing them to such an event might not have been the best idea.
Another early adopter, Sarah Slocum, claimed her Glass was snatched off her face in a bar by two women “who said techies like me are destroying the city (San Francisco)”.
Molotov’s, the scene of the crime, has joined other Bay Area bars in banning Glass.
Slocum, 34, still retains the tag #glasshead on social media.
Last Monday in Venice, a suburb of Los Angeles known as Silicon Beach, a man was robbed of his device by men armed with a stun gun as he sat on his patio.
“He said his life wasn’t worth the Google Glass, so he threw his electronics at them and ran into the house,” Sam Nicolisi, a friend, told NBC News.
Google has urged its users, known as Explorers, to employ common sense when wearing Glass.
“Respect others and if you are asked to turn off your phone, turn Glass off as well,” it advises. “Don't be creepy or rude — aka, a Glasshole.”
Despite the hype, there are indications that the spectacles are already falling out of fashion even before they become widely available.
Fickle “wearable tech” fans are now displaying more interest in a 3-D video-game headset called Oculus.
Consumer Watchdog, a Los Angeles lobbying group, listed 10 reasons not to wear Glass last week.
These included the headaches Glass causes and saying goodbye to using public lavatories. Glass looks stupid, means that your PIN number will never be safe and, in some states, cannot be worn while driving, the group said.
“How long do you think your friends will hang around?” it added for good measure.
The Sunday Times
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