As reported on TechCrunch.
by Darrell Etherington
Google isn’t doing its consumer launch of Glass just yet, but it is doing the next best thing: Opening up the Glass Explorer program to anyone in the U.S. starting April 15. That’s right, as of next Tuesday, any American resident can grab a Google Glass unit for $1,500 plus applicable taxes, and these will ship with your favorite shade or Glass-specific frame included, too.
The program opens its doors at 6 AM PT on Tuesday (9AM for you east coasters), and there are only limited spots available, so it’s probably going to be first-come, first-served. This is still a very expensive piece of hardware, and Google is very clear about this still being the Glass Explorer program specifically, so that comes with all the caveats about this being bleeding edge tech that’s prone to some bugs and refinements yet to come.
Google has previously expanded Glass Explorer program availability by giving the first round of Explorers invites for their friends and family, and now clearly wants to do as much as possible to open up the floodgates for a much broader beta pool.
If you’re outside the U.S., Google is still intent on saving you $1,500; the search giant says that it’s “not ready to bring Glass to other countries” as of yet.
Expanding the Explorer pool doesn’t mean the issues Glass has faced of late around public perception will go away, but it does mean that Google can gather feedback from a wider user group, and one that’s more likely to include people not constantly connected to the tech world and eager to adopt tech as early as possible. That’s probably still going to describe most of those willing to spend $1,500 on joining a beta pool, but when you’re pioneering face-based computing, it’s probably best to get as much early input as you can.
If you want to get reminded about the April 15 6 AM start time, sign up here, or just bookmark it and return to start Exploring.