Google Glass is now available to anyone who has $1,500 to spend, but many of those people remain unaware of what the high-tech specs can really do.
Here are five useful Google Glass apps to simplify travel experiences for everyone, starting with the most recently announced one.
1. Hotel Near Me
Photo source: Prnewswire
The hotel reservation app provides users with access to a list of the nearest hotels, based on their GPS position, by swiping the side of the glasses.
Developed by online travel agency Destinia and Glob3Mobile, users can scroll through the 230,000 hotels on the Destinia website and filter them by price.
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Simply by clicking on the hotel, the glasses show a brief description of the hotel and allow users to view photos.
Manuel de la Calle, co-founder of Glob3 Mobile, said: "We are working to perfect the augmented reality, which allows users to find hotels in their immediate vicinity. And in the future, this application will have many more features. For example, users will be able to refine their searches with additional voice commands."
The app is still in the testing phase as it awaits final approval from Google.
2. Word Lens
Photo source: Bildagentur Zoonar GmbH, Shutterstock
From menus to road signs, the app translates printed words instantly into whatever language you speak without the need for a network. Rather, it references a dictionary stored inside Glass.
The app, which is also available for iOS and Android, supports a variety of languages including Spanish, French, German, Italian and Russian.
Quest Visual, the makers behind the app, unveiled the app last year and was recently acquired by Google for an undisclosed amount.
3. Field Trip
The augmented reality (AR) app, developed by Google-owned Niantic Labs, provides holiday goers with information on everything they need to know about when they’re on their travels.
Released in August 2013, the app links 130 different information sources to your smartphone’s GPS to provide you with facts about your environment, whether it’s nightclubs, local restaurants, historical landscapes and other tourist spots.
Users simply say, "OK Google, explore nearby" to pull up information about the area around them. When something interesting pops up, users can also choose to have Field Trip narrate the information through Glass’s speaker.
4. TripIt
The Triplt app provides information and updates about your flight status, departure time, gate and other flight-related details with a glance.
Although voice command isn’t included, if you swipe to the left the Glass screen will display the current or upcoming itinerary. Users can also view alternate flights to find a faster way home or stay longer in a destination.
Developed by expense management specialist Concur, the app is available to download from the Google Play store for free, while a subscription fee of $49 per year is needed to access flight status alerts and other notifications.
Earlier this month, Rich Martin, Tripit’s head of mobile, said: "All your flight status updates are presented in plain view, freeing up your hands and making it easier to stay engaged with the world around you."
5. Foursquare
This Glass app allows users to find and make reservations for nearby restaurants, businesses and shops using voice commands. Simply by saying, "OK Glass, check me into", the app opens a list of possible locations you can choose from based on your GPS location.
