July 23, 2013

by Adina Daar, Research Consultant, Sachs Insights

Research Consultant Adina Daar was recently selected to participate in the Google Glass Explorers Program and talks about our forays into wearable technology-enabled research 

This is Glass!

Back in February, I — along with lots of tech enthusiasts answered the call for the ‘Golden Ticket’ competition to be among the first consumers to have access to Google Glass – a new, wearable personal computing device. So I sent Google a message online telling them what I would do #IFIHADGLASS. Here is what I submitted:

I thought it was a long shot, but sure enough I received word back that I could pick up Glass in a few months. I didn’t really think much of it, and then as the time to head over to the Google NYC office approached, I started thinking about it a lot.

Skipping forward to having Google Glass in hand, and I can honestly say that it is hard to grasp the experience and capabilities of this device before trying them on. Even with all of the documentation and blogs from other Glass Explorers online, Glass really only comes to life once you’ve lived it, and in many ways it just has to be experienced. It is like visiting another country, you can read all about it, but it doesn’t really click or make sense until you are drinking the wine.

When in Rome...

The most pleasant surprise is how few barriers there are to picking Glass up and using it like a plug and play device. When people try Glass on, they seem confident in using it within a few minutes (less confident about appearances!). But appearance aside, it is exciting to think of the possibilities that a very simple but powerful piece of technology can have when it is uncomplicated and approachable. This points to an immediate use case for giving research participants a way to capture their first person perspective, without the camera getting in the way of the tasks at hand.

"Please go about your life as you normally would."

At Sachs, we see Glass as an opportunity to bring our expertise and understanding of usability and consumer experiences to the table. In addition to better understanding the role that Glass can play as a tool for our industry specifically, it is also a way to connect with the current discourse and direction that we believe will have a tremendous impact on the products and services that clients and partners will aim to provide for their customers in the future.

We hope you will join us on this exciting journey by reading these posts and contributing your thoughts in the comments section. We love good conversations, new opportunities, and the chance to collaborate and contribute to the growing interest in wearable technology.

Until next time, here are some of our best ‘Glass Faces’ from the Sachs Team!