Are Wearable Computers the Future?

About the Author:
Logan Harper is a digital strategist for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's MPA@UNC: Master of Public Administration and MBA@UNC: Master of Business Administration programs. In addition to higher education, he is also passionate about travel, cooking, and international politics. Follow him on Twitter @harperlogan.

From subway riders of New York City to celebrities in Palo Alto, wearable computers are popping up in our everyday lives.

Currently, products mainly consist of eyewear such as goggles or watch-like bracelets. And for some tech enthusiasts, these new products may just be the natural progression of technology. But for many, the possibility and longevity of wearable computers can certainly be questioned.

Leading companies like Google, Apple and Nike are investing their success in these innovative product lines to persuade current smartphone users to stop staring down at their personal technology and instead experience the world around them.

Nike developed Nike+ so athletes can better track training sessions, mileage, times and overall improvement in their workout sessions. Microsoft recently filed a patent application for a product that can provide real-time data at sporting events.

Google's Project Glass eyewear that seeks to allow wearers to continue online searches, conversations and even identify a best route to their destination - all while looking straight ahead on their path.

And Apple is rumored to be designing the iWatch, which is a combination iPod touch and piece of jewelry. These product developments are just the beginning and we can expect an influx in additional wearable computers as consumers get over Bluetooth and further into tech.

Steve Mann has advocated for wearable computer products, such as eyewear, since the 1970s and even designed the "EyeTap Digital Eye Glass" in 1999. That Eye Glass design looks impressively similar to today's Google Glass update and judging from the current media coverage, consumers seem to be ready for it. Of course there are many questions regarding privacy, pricing and the simple argument of being "too connected." But it does not seem like we should expect these fears to slow down product development.

The potential benefits of wearable computers include better health monitoring, decrease in technology-based accidents like car crashes and increased grassroots management of global development projects.

Eventually, we may see the full immersion of these wearable computers. Similar to how smart phones and tablets quickly dispersed throughout populations. Wearable computers are already finding homes all over the world.

The trends of wearable computers are clearly toward further development and immersion into our everyday lives. It will definitely take some time before you are personally using Google Glass while driving to avoid the latest traffic jam in Los Angeles, but it will certainly happen sooner rather than later. The more hype around these products produces increased pressure to distribute them quickly.