Google Glass eyewear isn't dead, Eric Schmidt confirms

Google Glass won't die, despite some claims to the contrary.Sarah Tew/CNET

From CNET

Google's Glass smart eyewear might no longer be available, but it will be making a triumphant return, the search giant's executive chairman Eric Schmidt says.

Google Glass is "a big and very fundamental platform for Google," Schmidt told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published Monday. Schmidt went on to say that the company's decision to stop selling the initial version of the controversial gadget gives Google the opportunity "to make it ready for users."

Schmidt's comments are meant to blunt some suggestions that the eyewear, which allowed users to do everything from snap photos with the blink of an eye to get location-based information whenever they asked, is dead. In January, Google announced that it would no longer sell the Google Glass Explorer Edition, and moved the product from its secretive research lab Google X, where it was developed, to Google proper. Google Glass is now under the supervision of Tony Fadell, the head of the Nest home thermostat project that Google acquired last year for $3.2 billion.

The Glass eyewear, which was unveiled in 2012, was first offered to so-called "Explorers" in April 2013 who could prove they'd do something interesting and appealing with the technology. Google then started selling the smartglasses to the public in May 2014 for $1,500.

With no warning in January, Google said that it would stop offering Glass and go back to the drawing board under Fadell's supervision. The company said that it learned several things from its "Explorer" run and it's now working on improvements that would appeal to customers. Fadell, Google said at the time, would provide "direction and support." A new version of Glass could arrive later in 2015.

Suggestions that Google might kill Glass have come from concerns that it wasn't ready for prime time. While the technology itself worked fine, concerns over privacy were significant, and many critics found the devices obnoxious and intrusive. While Google called wearers "Explorers," they received the not-so-nice nickname of "glassholes" from critics -- a name that stuck and cast a sour light on the technology.

Other fault-finders included the likes of the Motion Picture Association of America, which worried that wearers could illegally record movies. The technology was banned in some theaters.

Still, the future looks bright for wearables, which is likely why Schmidt is adamant about keeping Glass in the minds of consumers. According to research firm IDC, wearable shipments -- a category that also encompasses smartwatches and fitness trackers -- will reach 100 million units by 2018, a nearly sixfold increase compared to 2014.