Next Generation Xybernaut Wearable

shanenewsom sent in linkage to a story running on the BBC which talks about the new Xybernaut Poma. A little light on the specs, although the headmounted screen is 640x480 and it runs WinCE. But it really does look like the first practical wearable. It should be available in March. Update: 01/21 18:52 GMT by T : Reader Eureses points out that the display is actually 800x600 rather than 640x480.

Comments

Why I'll never buy one

[interstellar_donkey]

When I take my laptop down the bar, girls might find me attractive. They might confuse me with a writer or something.

That'll never happen with one of these.

new excuse...

[bje2]

now the excuse can go from:

"Sorry officer, I didn't see that other car, i was too busy shaving and drinking my coffee..."
to...
"Sorry office, I didn't see that other car, i was too busy checking my e-mail and reading the latest stories on slashdot...."

Hey! It might run Linux.

[dbarclay10]

I saw an interview with a head honcho from Xybernaut a month or two ago on the Space channel. They showed this thing, and I'm almost positive he said it would run either Windows CE or Linux.

IIRC, though, it was still priced pretty high(several thousand dollars).

Effects on the eye

[Infonaut]

The only thing that makes me nervous about these things is that essentially your eyeball is just a few millimeters from a bright light source. Has anyone seen any research information about the long-term effects of close-proximity displays? I've got a gut feeling that it just can't be good for your eyes.

Re:Effects on the eye

[stereo_Barryo]

I played around with the MA IV and found the curved silvered mirror to be comfortable and easy on the eye. I don't believe the light source could get to the "dangerous" level. I'd be happy to use the head display for an extended period of time, but the MA IV was heavy in the vest we wore. Since the company has moved on to smaller devices the weight might not be relevant now. Also, according to this: http://www.xybernautonline.com/eCommerce/Poma/Plac _Poma.htm the screen is 640x480, not 800x600.

Help!

[NiftyNews]

Help! My shoes have a virus and my jacket just got caught in a nonzero loop!

Re:Print page, keep safe...

[TooTallFourThinking]

With one of the expansion slots, I believe you can plug in a keyboard.

As if listening to cell phone conversations wasn't annoying enough, now we'll be listening to AIM conversations as well.

"...I love you. Smiley face. Ok, I've got to go. I'll see you tonight. Wink smiley face."

"No, you log off first. No, you first..."

Blah!

Dork

[Konster]

It's bad enough that I'm a dork. Now I have to look like one, too?

$1500 bucks for an embedded processor, Windows CE driven headgear that will scare away potential mates and attract the law enforcement?

Thanks, but I'll pass.

Linux and Divx

[LuxuryYacht]

Debian already runs on the SH4. The SH7751V they seem to have chosen has a 0.9GFLOP FPU so it's capable of pretty decent Divx encodes and decodes. This unit could make for a pretty decent portable DVR.

Xyber-snatching?

[Dan Crash]

I admit that the wearable idea is pretty intriguing, but wouldn't this be even easier to steal than a laptop?

Imagine walking down the street, surfing the web, when suddenly you feel someone jostle your side. Your expensive new Xybernaut is yoinked off you and the thief takes off at Mach 1 while you're still trying to click the Back button.

Until the price of wearable PCs drops down to the price of a cell phone (or world peace spontaneously occurs), a wearable PC will be like a sign that says "I'm a big, rich, nerd. Please rob me."