These glasses are awesome! And every gadget I own is jealous.

Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, 2009. I lay back in my bunk, my vision filled with tropical vistas and low resolution women in bikinis challenging me to beach volleyball on my PlayStation 2 Slim. Over my eyes are Vuzix (Icuiti) AV-920s, attempting to render a usable image, the crow's feet on the corners of my eyes straining. My controller is resting on my chest, rising and falling with my yawns. I hear beyond the tropical music, "Yep, Meeks is in the matrix again--someone tell him it's time for chow".

I've been using HMDs for quite a while. My first was an Olympus Eye-trek. I bought it specifically to use while deployed overseas. I remember taking advantage of a day off, and I spent it in a dark room, away from the punishment of the Kuwaiti sun, nestled into the illusions of Xenosaga 2. After many hours, I had the strangest hallucinations of explosions when I looked at a white wall. I...might have overdone it a bit. The device had a health and safety time limit on it, experience has taught me to humor that every now and again.

Now in 2021, I am proud to own NuEyes Pro 3 glasses! Finally, the form factor is light enough, the field of view large enough, and quality good enough to rival some flat displays. The goggles terminate into a USB Type C connection, which makes using these goggles extremely versatile and easy to use. However there is a problem beyond NuEyes' responsibility: the current tech I have to interface with it just doesn't want to play nice!

First, I own a Pixel 3a. My old car has a 3.5mm aux cable. I need it. Also, I want all my future phones to have a headphone jack. Just because we now have blenders, refrigerators, and stand mixers doesn't mean we tossed the ancient technology of kitchen knives out. The same can be said of the 3.5mm headphone jack. There are two major problems I have with Google's offering. First, there is no USB Type C HDMI support, so plugging the Pro 3 into my daily driver as intended does nothing. It looks like my next phone will need HDMI support! Secondly, Google, in favor of promoting their Chromecast, has disabled the WiDi (Miracast) functionality. Thanks. Connecting my phone to these awesome goggles turned into an adventure.

I bought a Chromecast, a very large battery pack, an HDMI converter, and a nice pouch for the whole assemblage. I had heard that one could cast to a Chromecast without a WiFi connection. My plan was to sling this pouch over my shoulder, and go for a walk around the track of a nearby middle school--the perfect carrot to exercise this old horse. That didn't quite work. All attempts at casting directly to the Chromecast from my Pixel 3a failed. However, within the glow of my home's WiFi, this setup rocked! Within my top vision was whatever video I was casting, and below the floating screen was my phone as usual. I think my wife is used to my fascination with HMDs. I looked a bit odd slouched on the couch with sunglasses on staring into a corner of the room. Better than being hunched over staring down into my hand! When this heat wave in the Pacific Northwest subsides, I'll be on my balcony relaxing in my own outdoor media room!

Again, the image is great. No screen door effect; the image comfortably fits my entire field of view. For me, the bottom left corner is just barely out of view, but I think adjusting the nose piece will get it perfect. I have used it for a few hours now--no deleterious effects. The unit does get pretty warm on the stems, but not unbearable.

I'll count my Chromecast as a partial success. I tried my Miracast unit from Netgear. No luck there with my Pixel 3a due to a business decision, but I was able to cast my GPD Win micro PC with no issue. This wouldn't be good for gaming as Miracast has a delay, but videos would be tolerable. I wanted to use the mini-HDMI on the GPD Win, but it's broken! My luck! It's conspiring with my Pixel 3a..

Once upon a time, Google had some amazing spatial mapping technology called Tango. It was exceedingly promising, and in typical Google fashion, Google dropped it just as it was finally gaining traction among developers. So, I have an unlocked ASUS ZenPhone AR lying around usually used with my Daydream headset. Yes, I still watch YouTube in VR now and again. This phone does have USB Type C HDMI support! However--this phone wasn't the best reviewed; the HDMI feature only works sometimes. In fact, I can only get it to reliably work after a power down and a restart. That's not going to be a long term solution either.

Let's review the score: Chromecast only works within WiFi range. Miracast doesn't work on daily driver. Daily driver doesn't have USB Type C HDMI. An old unlocked phone does, but it is really picky about it. A micro PC works with Miracast, but I can't game because the HDMI is fried on it. Not the fault of the Pro 3, but one's tech shouldn't be fighting the arrival of these glasses!

Now I'm looking to upgrade my phone and looking at another model of the GPD with a USB Type C HDMI. It's the high tech equivalent of going to the hardware store when working a home improvement project.

Lastly, I take my privacy seriously. I just wanted an HMD. I didn't need SLAM or any type of head tracking. Yes, having the display float in specific point in space would be extremely productive, but then where I focus and what I do becomes valuable data for the HMD maker to sell in this attention economy, or of importance to foreign governments. No Nreal, nor 5G enabled glasses for me! I know these do what Larry Rosenthal demands: just be a damned peripheral. And that's just what I need in these. The Pro 3 does exactly what I expect. It's just the rest of my menagerie of technology is struggling with me. I have pleasant thoughts of using these glasses as a second monitor in a cramped bar whilst people watching, watching a movie on an airplane, or viewing ATAK for work . Lots of possibilities! I'm looking forward to exploring them! Great product NuEyes!