While Google Glass is working on quietly making a comeback in the smart glasses arena, another company is stepping into the ring.
Dispelix Oy, a spinoff company from the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, is creating a new display system they claim is good enough to eventually replace your smartphone.
Unlike Google Glass, which comes in the form of a head-mounted wearable device, Dispelix is focusing only on creating smart lenses that can be popped into any frame to enable an augmented reality experience. What's more, the company is aiming to have its display commercially available within a year.
The lenses use lightguide optics to display a large, high-quality image that is equivalent to a 60-inch TV viewed from a three meter (about 10 feet) distance, according to a press release.
Dispelix' lenses will first only offer displays related to exercise by providing stats on pulse rate, navigation, and activity data.
But Dispelix will eventually release lenses with functionalities geared toward the healthcare industry, manufacturing and process industry, and logistics.
The virtual image displayed on the lenses will remain in user's field of vision to prevent eye strain. Users can choose to display images in monochrome or multi-color.
Dispelix is in the fundraising phase and is building a partner network to get the smart lenses on the market as soon as possible. The company is aiming to make the first customer deliveries in 2016.
