May 11 (Reuters) – Science fiction is harder to watch in Google’s second attempt with glasses with a built-in computer.
A decade after the debut of Google Glass, a robust, sci-fi pair of specs that capture what media have seen but raise privacy concerns and receive low design ratings, on Wednesday Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) visualized a still-unnamed pair of standard looking glasses that show real-time call translations and show no hint of a camera.
The new pair of augmented reality glasses was just one of several long-term products Google unveiled at its annual Google I / O developer conference aimed at connecting the real world and the company’s digital universe to search, maps and other services. -the latest achievements in artificial intelligence.
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“What we’re working on is technology that allows us to break down language barriers by taking years of research into Google Translate and putting that into glasses,” said Eddie Chung, Google’s director of product management, calling the opportunity “subtitles for the world.” . “
Selling more hardware can help Google increase profits by keeping consumers in its technology network, where it doesn’t have to share ad sales with device makers like Apple Inc (AAPL.O) and Samsung Electronics CO. KS), which help to spread its services.
Google is also annoying the tablet, which will be launched in 2023, and the smartwatch, which will go on sale later this year, as it unveils a strategy to offer a group of products comparable to Apple.
But Google’s hardware business remains small, with its global market share of smartphones, for example, below 1%, according to researcher IDC. Recent searches, along with ongoing antitrust investigations around the world over Google’s dominance in mobile software and other areas, threaten to limit the company’s ability to make money in new ventures.
Shares of Alphabet fell 0.7% on Wednesday.
The unveiling of the new glasses reflects the company’s growing caution amid greater control over Big Tech. When Google Glass was demonstrated at I / O in 2012, paratroopers used it to broadcast a live jump to a building in San Francisco, and the company received a special air permit for the cascade.
This time, Google showed only a video of its prototype, which shows translations of conversations including English, Mandarin, Spanish and American Sign Language.
It does not specify a release date or immediately confirms that the device does not have a camera.
Apart from the gadget, Google previously demonstrated a feature that will eventually allow users to capture video from wine store shelves and ask the search app to perform features such as automatically identifying options from black-owned wineries. .
Similarly, consumers will be able to take a picture of a product later this year and find nearby stores where it is available.
Also later this year, Maps will release an immersive view of some major cities, combining Street View and aerial imagery, “to create a rich, digital model of the world,” Google said.
NEW HARDWARE
The tablet overturns Google’s decision three years ago to abandon its own production after poor sales. Only 500,000 of these units were delivered, according to IDC.
The new tablet follows growing consumer interest and was announced early to inform buyers considering alternatives, Rick Osterlo, Google’s senior vice president of devices and services, told reporters.
He added that the Pixel Watch, which will not be compatible with Apple’s iPhone, will attract various users of Google’s Fitbit devices, which is related to health and fitness and was acquired last year for $ 2.1 billion.
Among other announcements, a restarted Google Wallet app will actually store driver’s licenses in some parts of the United States later this year, reflecting a feature that Apple debuted for Arizona on its iPhones in March.
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Report by Paresh Dave in Auckland, California and Eugene Malik in Bengaluru. Edited by Paul Simao, Matthew Lewis, Nick Zieminski and Bernard Orr
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