Epson gets smart

Epson has launched the third generation of its Moverio smartglasses for augmented reality in Australia and New Zealand. The Moverio BT-300 features Epson's silicon-based OLED digital display technology, enabling transparent mobile augmented reality experiences for consumers, government and business. The Epson state that the Moverio BT-300 are also the lightest binocular see-though smartglasses announced to date.

At the launch Epson demonstrated how Moverio BT-300 smartglasses are key to a wide variety of consumer, commercial and government uses including flying drones, aerial photography and videography, medical surgery, VR learning, AR learning, emergency services response and rescue operations. The smartglasses are also used all around the world for urban planning, real estate, architecture, engineering, security, media, agriculture management and recreation including gaming, watching movies and AR tours at museums and galleries.   The Moverio BT-300 smartglasses are used by the Grand Prix world champion Mercedes AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team and by Manchester United Football Club so the coaches can analyse the players using augmented reality. Your reporter got a hands-on with the Moverio for a demonstration in the Mercedes garage prior to the Australian GP in Melbourne earlier this year. The device's application in a technical and training situation was a glimpse into the future.

     Epson Australia Consumer Division General Manager of Sales - Marketing Bruce Bealby said, "The Epson Moverio BT-300 are the first real smartglasses to have truly made it into the mainstream with their wide variety of uses and apps in the consumer, government and commercial worlds. They represent a major leap forward in mobile AR smart eyewear with their comfortable, lightweight form factor and powerful display engine. The transition from LCD backlit projection to Si-OLED enables higher contrast levels, a wider colour gamut and true display transparency which makes it game-changing technology."   The Moverio smartglasses are powered by a quad core Intel Atom X5 processor and Android 5.1, enabling built-in rendering of complex 3D objects. An upgraded 5 mega-pixel front-facing camera and on-board sensors enable the Moverio BT-300 to precisely determine the location of objects in the real world. The Si-OLED projection system can then render and lock 3D content to these objects, with no display background or edges in the field of view. Epson has built a global AR ecosystem of partners and solutions over the past five years and three commercially available products, something that has contributed significantly to the rapid rate of the smartglasses' adoption in the market.   Bruce Bealby concluded, "The BT-300 marks a major advance in technology and performance for the Moverio platform. By using Si-OLED we take advantage of reductions in power usage and weight, and improvements in response times, HD resolution, brightness and contrast. By choosing silicon rather than glass for our base wafer we achieve an even more precise pixel display. Moverio also has several truly unique benefits, for example being the only smartglasses you can legally fly drones with in Australia as they offer pilots crystal clear, transparent first-person views from the drone camera while simultaneously maintaining their line of sight with their aircraft. This makes flying and filming safer and helps users stay in compliance with local and national aviation regulations.

The Epson Moverio BT-300 smartglasses are available at www.epson.com.au for an RRP of AUD$1,199.00 and at www.epson.co.nz for an RRP of NZ$1,299.00.