Adventure Tech: Recon Jet Heads-Up Display

Yesterday at Google I/O, Recon Instruments took the wraps of their newest product the Recon Jet. Over the past few years the company has been an innovator in the field of creating heads-up displays (HUD) not unlike Google's own Glass. In the case of Recon Instruments however, their HUD's have integrated into ski goggles giving he user information such as speed, altitude, temperature and so on. The Recon Jet will take the technology that has been seen in those previous products off the slopes however and put them to use in our other outdoor activities.

The Jet is powered by a dual-core processor running the Android operating system and features a tiny LCD screen, an HD camera and built in GPS. It offers support for WiFi, ANT+ and Bluetooth technologies and will have its own extensible development platform that will allow others to create apps designed specifically for the device. Reportedly that will include some form of video streaming and of course integration with social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. Built in sensors such as accelerometers, gyroscopes and altimeters will provide a host of information, while a mic and speakers will allow you to take calls and possibly provide voice commands. The Recon Jet is designed to be mounted on a pair of sunglasses and provide a wealth of information at a glance.

The video below gives us a glimpse of what the Jet could be like when put to use in the real world, although much of what is shown is clearly a mock-up. The gadget is set to ship sometime this year and I would expect that we'll hear much more about this at Outdoor Retailer in a few months.

Personally, I think this looks more like something I'd use over Google Glass, as I could see how it would come in handy while running or cycling. No word yet on pricing.