While Google Glass Enterprise Edition isn’t for consumers and likely won’t ever be (if for no other reason than it’s more than 2 years old at this point), there are still plenty of enthusiasts out there that might want all the nitty gritty details on the Glass successor. So now, for the first time, we’ve gotten our hands on a complete spec sheet for Glass Enterprise Edition…
We told you across several exclusive reports a couple of years ago that a second model of Google Glass was being privately tested within the Mountain View company’s Project Aura group as well as by a select group of Glass for Work partners. We were even the first to report the “Enterprise Edition” name, and that, as well as everything else we told you all the way back in the summer of 2015, was finally confirmed by Google last week.
We already reported on the device’s support for 802.11a/b/g/n/ac WiFi on both 2.4GHz and 5 GHz bands, larger prism, Intel Atom CPU, optional external battery pack, foldable, more water resistant, and more. But now we have the full rundown of details.
Display
We don’t have many new details on the device’s display, and that’s because not much has changed since the first Google Glass. As I mentioned in a report in 2015, the prism is ever-so-slightly wider than the first model, but the actual resolution of the display hasn’t changed. It’s a projected display that’s the equivalent of a traditional 640 x 360 screen. Unfortunately, we don’t have any new information on the maker of the display.
Audio
The original Google Glass famously has a bone conduction speaker, and Google decided to ditch that hardware feature with the Enterprise Edition. The new model has a simple speaker that audibly plays sound next to the right ear. The quality of this speaker is much better than that of the original Glass.
Sensors
One place that Google Glass Enterprise Edition is notably different than the original Google Glass is its sensor suite. Like the original Google Glass, it has an ambient light sensor, a digital compass, a wink sensor, and a blink sensor. The newer model adds a barometer, a capacitive head sensor (in place of the proximity sensor), a hinge sensor (for determining whether the hinge is open or closed) and assisted GPS & GLONASS.
WiFi and connectivity
WiFi, as previously reported, has been upgraded to dual-band 2.4 + 5 GHz 802.11a/b/g/n/ac. On the Bluetooth front, the Enterprise Edition supports Bluetooth LE and HID, and supports multiple Bluetooth connections at once.
Camera
The camera is spec-wise the same as the original Google Glass, supporting 5MP stills and 720p video. We’re told by multiple sources that the quality of footage on the new model looks slightly improved in terms of field of view and color accuracy, but we don’t have any primary source material to back up these claims. There’s also an LED on the front of the device that illuminates when the device is recording a video.
Chipset
As we reported a couple of years ago, Google Glass Enterprise Edition ships with Intel silicon. The chipset is an Intel Atom, but the specific model is still unknown. One source says tells me that it’s a custom Intel Atom chipset that hasn’t been used in other devices. The OS is 32-bit.
Storage and memory
The newer Glass Enterprise doubles the amount of storage space from the original — up to 32GB from 16GB. On the RAM side of things, Enterprise Edition sports the same amount of RAM as Glass Explorer Edition: 2GB.
Battery and charger
Glass Enterprise Edition ditches microUSB in favor of a new pin-based charging system, and that means that many of the XE accessories such as its earbud are no longer compatible. This new pin system works with a charger that is 5V and 1.5A, and the battery it charges is slightly larger than the original Google Glass at 780 mAh. Battery life was one of the biggest complaints with the original Google Glass and its measly 570 mAh battery.
Accessories
As we reported, Google developed a battery pack for Enterprise Edition that extended the device’s battery life significantly, although we’re not completely sure what the capacity of that accessory was. Google also developed new as-yet-unannounced frames for the Enterprise Edition with some partner companies, including 3M, that were for a variety of purposes. Some with support for custom prescriptions, and some for eye and sun protection.
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