Google announced it will stop selling its internet-connected eyewear to consumers. Picture: Jeff Chiu/AP Source: AP
GOOGLE has announced it will be ending sales of its much-hyped Google Glass eyewear until the company can develop a more polished and affordable version.
Following its release in the US in early 2013 and the UK last June, the technology allowed users to surf the web, check emails and record video.
The company has announced it will also discontinue its ‘Explorer’ program which aimed to see how people used the technology.
The tech giant publicised the decision in a post on Google+.
“We’re closing the Explorer Program so we can focus on what’s coming next. January 19 will be the last day to get the Glass Explorer Edition. In the meantime, we’re continuing to build for the future, and you’ll start to see future versions of Glass when they’re ready,” Google wrote.
Under the plan, Google’s Glass team will move out of the Google X division to become its own entity within Google.
The team, led by former fashion executive Ivy Ross, will report to Tony Fadell, founder and chief executive of automation business Nest Labs, which was acquired by Google a year ago.