Life is full of amazing memories - and sometimes, we just want to capture them.
Of course, we have smartphones and cameras and other devices that record video... But that's not the same.
Haven't you ever wished for a way to record things exactly as your eyes saw them?
Well, your wish might soon come true.
Sony is apparently working on Smart contact lenses that can record what you see!
Smart contact lenses are not something entirely new - other companies are already working on products that might improve the patient's visionary experience or add an augmented reality factor to it.
After Google's smart glasses, Google Glasses, were drowned by criticism, the Internet Giant had also announced that they would be working on smart contact lenses next.
They're biggest rival, Samsung, has also announced that they would be working on contact lenses that include a tiny camera.
But Sony's specific claim that the lenses should record and store videos are something new.
Sony has already filed the patent for this new product in 2013, but the media has only picked up the story this year.
Apparently the contact lenses will be able to autofocus and zoom, and the user should be able to control them by blinking.
What's interesting is that the lenses would be a standalone device, there's no need to connect them to a Smartphone - and still, the lense would be able to STORE videos and photos, as well as record them.
Experts suggest that the product would be powered by electromagnetic fields.
The lense would be able to recognize when you're consciously blinking to activate it, or when you're simply blinking because it's natural.
"It is known that a time period of usual blinking is usually 0.2 seconds to 0.4 seconds, and therefore it can be said that, in the case where the time period of blinking exceeds 0.5 seconds, the blinking is conscious blinking"-Quote from the patent application
Now imagine the possibilities that you'd have with this kind of technology ...
- Treasure and re-live certain memories like your wedding or your kid's first words
- Forgot something? Simply check your recorded data and you will see what you wanted to do!
- Can't remember a name or a fact for your exam? Just rewind and you'll remember.
- When arguing over the past with someone, you could just look back at old memories and instantly see who's right
- Benefits for criminal justice: Has the subject really committed the crime? Simply check their recordings!
Lying would become impossible.
But there are not only positive aspects to these contact lenses ...
This is a clip from the Series "Black Mirror", which features futuristic, dystopian scenarios.
The episode "The Entire History Of You" showed exactly what smart-recording contact lenses could do to our lives.
It shows that people might end up relying on positive memories so much that the forget to live in the moment, and that we could become obsessed with our past.
Apart from that, obviously we would face huge privacy issues, as nobody would know when they'd be recorded by someone else.
This is the entire episode, that gives us an interesting outlook on how this technology could impact our lives:
Of course, these smart contact lenses are still only at the patent stage and we're far from actually using these in our daily lives. But still, it's a remarkable technology that could have a huge impact on our lives in the future !
What's your opinion about it?
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the technology itself has a lot of potential, but there would have to be some kind of rules.. which would be had to realize, but otherwise the possibilities for misuse would be too large. just think about cheating in a test - you could just read the information once and then rewind to that scene when taking the test..
it's hard to impose a rule if everybody's wearing it and the contacts are almost invisible - but I do agree, we would have to find some way to deal with it and limit the misuses.
There's one thing I think many people aren't thinking of in terms of creating videos with technology like this: The human head and human eyes don't make for a great camera system. Let me explain: We use our peripheral vision for much of what we look at. We use muscles in our eyes called extraocular muscles. These muscles have a movement very much like that of the neck of a pigeon, very very jerky. Frankly, I think we'd be able to get the result we're looking for by working on the technology to integrate high-quality camera tech in glasses or sunglasses. You'd get the head motion one might expect (which is dizzying in and of itself in most cases), but you'd be eliminating the jerky motion of the eyes themselves.
very interesting aspect, thanks for the input.
And you're right, even these lenses wouldn't be able to capture something exactly as we've experienced it, since there are many different factors that tie into this, not only just looking at something with our eyeballs!
Классная идя. Только когда она до нас дойдет))
I'll throw in a bet that amateur porn videos will increase drastically :P
hahaha.
Yes, video sharing in all forms will increase drastically.
Also it will be a way to show people what you've experienced - sometimes, you just can't put it into words.
Never thought that future is that near!
nobody said its near. As far as I can say this technology is still 20 years away - minimum.
Today we cant even make good working smartwatches. Recording devices one hundreths that size?
yes, there's definitely still a long way to go. But filing a patent already shows that Google, Sony and Samsung are working on it.
that’s AMAZING, but also scary at the same time …
We'd have to wait and see how it would be implemented and used..
that's not a good idea. I can't say I like it.
it definitely has negative aspects, but benefits as well.
I also thought of that exact same Black Mirror episode when I read the headline!!
Now I wonder if the creators knew of existing plans for smart contacts when writing the episode ..?
I’ve always dreamed of being to record your favorite memories and then looking back at them, that would be just awesome!
of course there's downsides of this as well..
It all depends on how we'd use it. It will be interesting to see which direction this takes in the future!
A discussion about this could be endless… there are so many positive AND negative features, I don’t even know where to start. But the technology itself is fascinating!
there's always going to be new positive and negative aspects to come up with.
But I'm also looking forward to the development of this technology in the future.
If used for the right reasons and in the right moments, this could be an amazing tool for humanity!
exactly, it all depends on the features and HOW and WHEN people use it.
It shows the potential of the digital era we are living in. However, it will undoubtedly have lots of pros and cons. It's time to be aware. :-) you never know the person in front of you might be wearing these lenses. So, be careful about your actions, words etc at all times.
exactly, we would face a lot of privacy issues when this gets released. you would never know when you're being recorded, and that could potentially even be uploaded to the internet ...
Yeah, I think when these types of invention becomes accessible to people, alongside there should be some law in place for protection against the misuse of the same. Then only it will be blessing of technology, otherwise it will turn out to be curse to mankind.
What a great way to covertly persuade and enforce self-censorship. Fascinating and terrifying tech!
fascinating and terrifying - I like that to sum it up. Very true!
This is even more scary than the glasses one.
definitely. Yo would never know when someone else might be wearing these and record you ... not a very nice thought.
can't say i like the idea at all, especially as you will still have to poke yourself in the eye to wear them.
they'd also have to work around the fact that large parts of the population can't wear contacts because of the shape of their eye.
you're right, I actually haven't even thought about that issue yet, They'd definitely have to come in different versions!
I'm looking forward to when this kind of technology becomes affordable. My only fear is that I hope the Samsung smart contact lenses don't catch on fire.
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