While VR headsets are getting all the hype, a new entertainment focused wearable called Speck could be about to revolutionise the cinema.
Speck is a pair of 4K specs for watching movies in a slightly different way. Effectively putting a 4K 100-inch screen in front of your eyes, Speck promises to offer synapse-melting visuals, using wearable tech as the vehicle.
Essential reading: Guide to PlayStation VR
And the project seems to be in good hands. Allomind has recruited Industrial design company Ammunition, which has worked with Beats on its headphones. Territory Studios is also involved, having previously been charged with designing the user interfaces behind The Martian, The Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Ex Machina.
There's no specs or details on the tech behind Speck as yet – and the site is bereft of any meaningful designs, which is always a big concern. However, it's not short on big claims; Allomind's CEO says he believes that it represents a push towards more personal entertainment experiences.
"When you look at pretty much any device out there, from our phones to our computers, the push is to go smaller," said Abhijit Limaye, Allomind's CEO. "Screens are the only components that are getting bigger instead. Why? Immersive field of view. People want to be immersed in their movies and media."
As VR takes off in 2016, there's also a push towards wearable entertainment. The Avegant Glyph is another such device that's designed to offer immersive entertainment on the go and we're excited to get our hands on one.
What makes Speck special is the promise of a 4K experience inside minimal headgear. Avegant delivers a 1280 x 720 picture per eye with a 45 degree field of view and weighs nearly half a kilo. Any improvement on that could be a big leap forward for cine-specs – if Speck can live up to its own hype.
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James is the co-founder of Wareable, and he has been a technology journalist for 15 years.
He started his career at Future Publishing, James became the features editor of T3 Magazine and T3.com and was a regular contributor to TechRadar – before leaving Future Publishing to found Wareable in 2014.
James has been at the helm of Wareable since 2014 and has become one of the leading experts in wearable technologies globally. He has reviewed, tested, and covered pretty much every wearable on the market, and is passionate about the evolving industry, and wearables helping people achieve healthier and happier lives.