Google seeks 'explorers' to highlight smart glasses

San Francisco - Google launched its smart glasses to the public Wednesday, but would-be buyers of the 1,500-dollar device will be chosen via a competition in which they are asked to outline how they plan to use the nifty gadget.

Google Glass is a small set of eyeglasses with smartphone-like capabilities, which are controlled by voice commands and project information unobtrusively in the corner of the wearer’s field of vision.

According to a company blog posting, Google will choose the first recipients based on 50-word applications received via Google+ or Twitter, plus five pictures and a 15-second video.

The competition is open to US residents age 18 or over. Google did not say how many of the devices would be sold to the competition winners.

"We’re expanding the Glass Explorer programme to find people who are really excited about experimenting with new technology that’ll literally be changing before their eyes," Google representative Maggie Shiels told dpa. "Most of our initial Explorers are developers, so now we’re looking for a really diverse group, with people from all sorts of backgrounds, hobbies, jobs and lifestyles."//DPA