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Geek chic? Google Glass eyewear hits the runway during New York Fashion Week

It seems that whenever Google gives us a little sneak peek at Glass someone complains about how unfashionable the augmented reality eyewear looks. The search engine giant's recent collaboration with designer Diane von Furstenberg might nip some of those complaints in the bud though.During New York Fashion Week, several models and other members of the Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) team wore Glass
DVF / Today
Watching a fashion show through the eyes of Google Glass occasionally means dealing with some blinding camera flashes.
Watching a fashion show through the eyes of Google Glass occasionally means dealing with some blinding camera flashes.DVF / Today

It seems that whenever Google gives us a little sneak peek at Glass someone complains about how unfashionable the augmented reality eyewear looks. The search engine giant's recent collaboration with designer Diane von Furstenberg might nip some of those complaints in the bud though.

During New York Fashion Week, several models and other members of the Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) team wore Glass in order to offer a new perspective on what happens behind the scenes of a fashion show. Some of the resulting images have already been posted to the official DVF Google+ page and a short film — consisting of Glass footage, naturally — will be released via the same page (as well as Google's official YouTube channel) on Thursday.

Diane Von Furstenberg watches a practice run of her Spring 2013 show with Google co-founder Sergey Brin. (No, this particular image was not taken using Google Glass.)
Diane Von Furstenberg watches a practice run of her Spring 2013 show with Google co-founder Sergey Brin. (No, this particular image was not taken using Google Glass.)Seth Wenig / AP / Today

“I am so excited to introduce Glass to the fashion world and use this revolutionary technology to give everyone a unique perspective into fashion," von Furstenberg was quoted as remarking while Google co-founder Sergey Brin added that "beauty, style and comfort are as important to Glass as the latest technology."

(Yes, Brin's comment is a bit strange considering that it's coming from a man known to wear Crocs — foam clogs — during even the most significant of events.)

DVF / Today

The DVF collaboration isn't as exciting as stunts Google pulled to show off Glass during its annual Google I/O event, but it's noteworthy that the company is clearly attempting to make its latest device as socially acceptable as possible. After all, if basejumpers, mountaineers, cyclists and supermodels can wear Glass, why couldn't everyone else?

DVF / Today

Beyond the small number of demonstrations and a very much conceptual video, Google hasn't shown or told us much when it comes to Glass. We do know that, theoretically speaking, we might one day wake up, slip on our Google Glass eyewear and go about our daily routines. Since the device's display is located on the very edge of one's field of vision, it should be easy to forget that it's there until it's time to look up directions, snap a quick photo, check text messages, or perhaps even start a Google Hangout.

Google's been fairly skittish about revealing too much about the actual hardware or how we'll interact with it, but based on what's been seen so far, it's fair to assume that the device's colorful band allows for touch-based input, includes some sort of audio output, and contains a small amount of fairy dust.

It's not known when Glass will be available to the public — though we've heard rumors about dates ranging anywhere between mid-2013 to early 2014 — but Google did allow select developers to pre-order Glass during the Google I/O conference in June. 

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