My intuition is that this is only true insofar as sensory augmentation up to this point has been mostly useless. The reason you don't see delivery people or mechanics or whoever with headgear isn't because it's dorky (although of course it is), but because it just doesn't help that much. We live in a world that has been very well designed for people with the usual basic senses, so adding more on doesn't give you that much more information.[0]
So miniaturization is important, but I think the real improvements to be made are in software. In the coming era, these devices are going to start offering real-world superpowers. People who never forget a face, or where they put their keys, or anything really. People who can have a quiet conversation in a noisy room. People who can do basic computing tasks subconsciously while having a conversation. People with "spider-sense" who never seem surprised by anything.
These tools will still look dorky, but the advantages they offer will be so great that the people who do use them will be very cool regardless.
[0] And I'd augment this claim by noting two examples off the top of my head of people who do use these technologies professionally: surgeons and fighter pilots. Both of those jobs involve doing unfathomably difficult things human beings are incredibly unsuited to do, so they will take every advantage they can get, hang the cost and the aesthetic.
Brainport seems to be the most useful kind of sensory technology available. Giving you the ability to 'see' all kinds of different inputs, such as radar, sonar, UV, vision, balance, etc.
The only problem is that it requires your tongue. And your tongue is where you talk and eat. Once we can overcome this problem, there are huge implications.
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My intuition is that this is only true insofar as sensory augmentation up to this point has been mostly useless. The reason you don't see delivery people or mechanics or whoever with headgear isn't because it's dorky (although of course it is), but because it just doesn't help that much. We live in a world that has been very well designed for people with the usual basic senses, so adding more on doesn't give you that much more information.[0]
So miniaturization is important, but I think the real improvements to be made are in software. In the coming era, these devices are going to start offering real-world superpowers. People who never forget a face, or where they put their keys, or anything really. People who can have a quiet conversation in a noisy room. People who can do basic computing tasks subconsciously while having a conversation. People with "spider-sense" who never seem surprised by anything.
These tools will still look dorky, but the advantages they offer will be so great that the people who do use them will be very cool regardless.
[0] And I'd augment this claim by noting two examples off the top of my head of people who do use these technologies professionally: surgeons and fighter pilots. Both of those jobs involve doing unfathomably difficult things human beings are incredibly unsuited to do, so they will take every advantage they can get, hang the cost and the aesthetic.
Brainport seems to be the most useful kind of sensory technology available. Giving you the ability to 'see' all kinds of different inputs, such as radar, sonar, UV, vision, balance, etc.
The only problem is that it requires your tongue. And your tongue is where you talk and eat. Once we can overcome this problem, there are huge implications.