The Google Glass Explorer units currently in the hands of a select number of folks will soon give iPhone users greater access to the device’s key features, according to a report on Friday.
Presently, if users wish to read messages and view walking directions within their eyeline, they need to be tethered to the internet connection of an Android phone that has the Glass companion app installed.
iPhone users are currently excluded from accessing this functionality, which just happens to be one of the wearable device’s key selling points.
However, according to a TechCrunch report, the Glass headset will soon be able to operate independently of the companion app and will not require the smartphone to act as a go between in many cases
This means iPhone users tethering their device to the smartphone won’t need the companion app to do the heavy lifting for them. And, if they’re using a public Wi-Fi hotspot, they may not need the smartphone at all.
Frederic Lardinois of TechCrunch wrote in his report on Friday: “To use text messaging and navigation on Google Glass, users currently have to pair it with an Android phone and install the Glass companion app on their phones. This will change very soon, however, one of the Google representatives in its New York office told me when I picked up my own unit yesterday afternoon. Glass, the Google employee told me, will soon be able to handle these features independent of the device the user has paired it to (and maybe even independent of the Glass companion app).”
Engadget points out that Glass users may still need to bring in GPS data from a synced handset as the Google Glass headset does not have a separate GPS receiver in its current iteration.
This may change by the time the device goes on sale to consumers, either late next year or early next year.
Via: TechCrunch
