According to The Wall Street Journal, a source "familiar with the matter" claims that Microsoft is testing prototypes of a web-connected Google Glass rival. Recently, wearable technology has been all the buzz with both Google Glass and the Samsung Galaxy Gear making news, and reports of Apple working on a rumored iWatch. It appears that Microsoft doesn't want to be left behind in the race to the first successful wearable tech device.
We first caught a glimpse of Microsoft's intentions well over a year ago, when a supposed "roadmap" for the Xbox brand leaked revealing information about the Xbox One (then internally called Xbox 720) and Kinect V2, as well as a still yet-to-be-unveiled Project Fortaleza glasses you can see in the image above—which could be what this WSJ source is referring to.
In this roadmap, Microsoft looked to be planning to bring an in-home wifi-enabled version of Fortaleza glasses to the living room in 2014 that would be integrated with the next gen Xbox now known as the Xbox One. In 2015, the same roadmap showed a 4G-enabled version that brought an Xbox experience everywhere via the device.
The source goes on to say that the prototype may never reach mass production, but that Microsoft is "determined to take the lead in hardware manufacturing to make sure the company won't miss out on the opportunities in the wearable gadget market".
What do you think? Will wearable technology ever take off?
