Glass moves to UK as Google broadens Explorer programme

Google Glass has gone on sale in the UK, becoming the second country where the wearable technology has become available.

Google has opened the Explorer programme to UK residents, giving them the opportunity to become among the first to get their hands on the device for £1,000.

The wearable tech links smartphones to a small display worn in the field of view, allowing users to access their messages, emails, calls and search with a few voice commands. Glass can also take photographs and record video.

The Explorer programme is part of Google’s test phase for the technology. Earlier this year it opened the Explorer programme in the US to regular consumers - previously, it was only developers who could get their hands on it - for a short time.

Among the apps already available for Glass are music discovery service Shazam, astronomy app StarChart and fitness game Zombies, Run.

Google has also moved to make the product more appealing to the average consumer by making more stylish frames available, linking up with different designers to do so.

But Google Glass has also hit some snags along the way, as privacy advocates raised concerns that it could be used covertly. Although Google Glass is not yet available commercially - officially it’s still in test phase - it has already been banned by some cinema chains, casinos and even bars and coffee shops. Those who want to use Google Glass while driving could also fall foul of the law.

For its part, Google has kept a tight grip on the apps that can be developed for Glass, pledging that facial recognition would not be added to its functionality. It has also banned adult or explicit content, violence and other objectionable material from the device.