Google Glass Targeting End Of 2013 Consumer Release, With Price Tag Under $1,500

Google seems to be looking to bring its ambitious Google Glass wearable computer to market much faster than many likely anticipated, according to the Verge. Google told the site that it hopes to have a “fully-polished” version of Glass available for sale to ordinary consumers by the end of 2013. The cost will be under the $1,500 Google was asking for developer-targeted editions of the headsets put up for pre-order first at Google I/O, and then again earlier this week.

This is the most clear Google has been yet about its public release schedule for the headset-mounted computing device. The company had previously been reported to be targeting a year-end 2013 consumer release, with a price point around that of current smartphones, according to a report from last February by the New York Times’ Nick Bilton. Then in June 2012, Google co-founder Sergey Brin suggested that a rough timeline for developer and consumer availability would put the device in the hands of the general public in 2014.

This time, a Google official has said directly that the company is targeting an end-of-year release date, so there’s little room for different interpretations there, and the credibility of the source isn’t up for debate. Google’s recent release to a broader audience beyond just developers via an application process indicates things might be moving quicker than the company previously expected.

The Verge also got some extended hands-on time with Glass, and notes that it is compatible with iPhone devices as well as Android handsets. They also came away convinced that this is something that Google will eventually be able to turn into a device with mass-market appeal, whether or not it’s quite at that stage by the time it hopefully hits shelves later this year.