Eric Schmidt says consumer version of Google Glass ‘probably a year-ish away’

Google has never committed fully to a launch date for a consumer version of Glass, though the headset may not be available as soon as was first thought. Google executive chairman said that a Glass for consumers is “probably a year-ish away” in an interview for BBC Radio 4’s “World at One” today. The interview covers a range of topics include Schmidt’s new book, Google’s UK tax policy, privacy, and more, though interviewer Martha Kearney did briefly ask him about Glass. Schmidt added that thousands of developers will be using Glass in the next few months and that Google will monitor feedback from them and make changes before releasing a consumer model.

The first developers have already received the “Explorer Edition” of Glass that was put on sale at last year’s Google I/O conference. Back in February, Google informed us that it was aiming to release a “fully-polished” version of Glass by the end of this year for under $1,500. It’s worth noting that Google may very well still be on track for that timeframe — Schmidt isn’t directly involved with Glass, and he is known for sometimes speaking off-the-cuff. Schmidt’s comments about Glass begin at the 32:30 mark in the radio program, while the interview itself begins at 27:45.