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7 Up-and-Coming Wearable Technologies

October 28, 2015

A person using Google Cardboard.

Photo Courtesy of Google Cardboard

"From the Apple Watch to the plethora of activity trackers such as Fitbit, wearable technology is becoming more common — and companies are creating a steady stream of new devices that we can wear on our eyes, head, wrist and body to communicate, consume and compute. Here are seven cutting-edge wearable technologies and some of their potential applications in and out of the classroom.

Google Cardboard

Google Cardboard is an inexpensive virtual reality system. As the name suggests, the headsets are made out of cardboard that can be folded with a smartphone and special lenses inside. The wearer looks through the lenses to a three-dimensional image or YouTube 360 video in the Google Cardboard app on the smartphone. 

The advantage of Google Cardboard over other VR systems is that it's inexpensive. Units are available for $10 to $20 each. It also leverages technology many people already own: a smartphone. Emory Craig, director of e-learning and instructional technologies at The College of New Rochelle in New York, sees the simplicity of creating virtual experiences as another major advantage of Cardboard in the cash-strapped world of education. "I could see students in higher education making use of this because it's becoming easier and easier to create 360-degree environments through apps on your smartphone," he said."

Read more at Campus Technology