Epson's smart glasses are for tech-loving mechanics

For the mall-pounding public, smart glasses are a hard sell. The combo of dorky looks and, well, lack of actual need has strangled the few attempts to commercialize them. Epson (of printer fame) thinks trade and industry is where the market/money is, and is adding another smart headset to its professional-friendly range. The Moverio Pro BT-2000 (yah, really) is based on Epson's existing BT-200 model, with a more rugged design and a juicier specification. This time around, Epson is tempting engineers with a 5-megapixel stereo/3D camera with depth sensing, head tracking and support for augmented reality, like if Dickies made HoloLens.

Factories and workplaces of the near future, at least those with the BT-2000, would have engineers sharing what they are doing, beaming images directly to other headsets for remote viewing -- be it for training or remote support (thanks to WiFi and Bluetooth conenctivity). Or, working on a tricky motor, with the schematics or next step right there in your peripheral vision. The Android-based software also adds scope for custom applications, plus there's support for voice control. There's no word on price, so we can't say if there's scope for consumers to consider them as an industrial-strength alternative to Google Glass (stranger things have happened). We'll also have to wait until the autumn release to see if the big world of business bites too.