Rest in Peace, Google Glass: 2012-2014

I'm still curious if Google ever really planned for Glass to be more than a niche/experimental device. I'd be surprised if most of the big players in the field don't have similar R&D projects going on all the time but Google is different in that they sometimes release early versions for enthusiasts and developers to see how people use them out in the "real world".

It doesn't do much for their image as people seem to discount anything that isn't an immediate success but I guess it's the sort of thing you can do if your company has the kind of resources that Google does.

I'd have loved a set if only for the novelty and tinkering potential but even after the project went on for a year or two it's still priced like an expensive developer kit. I wonder if things would've been different if they had sold them for under $500 instead of three times that amount. It wouldn't be the first pricey gadget I bought without an immediate compelling use (just ask my Leap Motion, Oculus Dev Kit, and piles of other sub-$500 devices I've got laying around).

I guess what I'm really curious about is what they've taken away from this little experiment. What have they learned about these kinds of interfaces and devices that might show up in more mainstream devices down the road?

I'm a schmo who bought a Google Glass and accept this was a bad purchase. I bought it for one app ... the ability to cast a video to my parents via Google hangouts. Google took this feature out after my 30 day return was over. Now, Glass is a paperweight for me. I know there are other apps out there that do video casting but I'm not going to force my parents to learn yet another app again (was hard teaching them hangouts the first time).