US Army
“The devices would have brought us death” – US Army gives devastating testimony to data glasses from Microsoft
Microsoft wants to equip the US Army – but the tests have not been good so far.
©Microsoft
For some time now, soldiers in the US Army have been able to test the use of Microsoft’s data glasses Hololens for use. But the conclusion so far is sobering.
For more than three years, Microsoft and the US Army have been working to support soldiers in the field with data glasses and to beam important mission information directly into the ground troops’ field of vision. For such glasses, Microsoft relies on technology from the HoloLens, a so-called “mixed reality glasses”, which has been on the market since 2016, but has not yet been allowed to be bought by private customers. But according to a report by “Business Insider”, the first tests are devastating.
The HoloLens makes it possible to display 3D projections, i.e. holograms, in a person’s field of vision. Theoretically, this is also interesting for soldiers, which is why Microsoft signed a contract with the US Army despite harsh criticism from its own workforce. According to the Army, such goggles could be a device that offers “enhanced kill capability, mobility, and advantages necessary to achieve superiority over current and future adversaries.”
Many disadvantages – so far little benefit
In reality, however, it looks different in the truest sense of the word, reports “Business Insider”, citing statements from soldiers. Accordingly, a tester even said that the HoloLens in its current form would have cost lives in real use.
However, this has nothing to do with the information provided by the Hololens, but with the glasses themselves. Because the light produced by the Hololens is bright enough to be able to precisely locate soldiers from hundreds of meters away in the dark, they say.
According to a Microsoft employee, the glasses were not convincing in four out of six operation scenarios. In addition to the light emission, the soldiers also complained about the weight of the HoloLens, the limited field of view and the size of the glasses. The more common complaints also included nausea, headaches and eyestrain.
Deliveries halted for the time being
Unsurprisingly, senior officers concluded that improvements were needed to make the Hololens operational. The acceptance of the soldiers so far is “low”, they say.
This is a financial problem for Microsoft, as deliveries that have already been approved have been stopped and postponed due to the many adjustments that are being requested from the soldiers. Actually, the US Army should receive around 120,000 pairs of glasses over the next ten years – and shell out almost 22 billion US dollars for them.
Sources: slate, Microsoft, Business Insider