Google Glass-alike tech for cars introduced by Navdy

A new device designed to bring your smartphone display to your car windshield, albeit more safely, has been unveiled by startup company Navdy.

Rather than beam your phone screen to your windshield, however, the device actually works on its own with an interface designed to keep drivers safe and undistracted while still alerting them to messages, calls and notifications.

Navdy's product projects a transparent display in front of the driver, designed to be unobtrusive and to help drivers avoid the dangers of using phones, tablets and other tech while on the road. With it, users can take phone calls, access music and more.

The device comes with a dual-core processor, Android 4.4 KitKat, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, mini-USB port and lots more besides.

Navdy CTO and co-founder, Karl Guttag, told Mashable: "It's obvious that touchscreens and nobs and buttons all force you to take your eyes off the road. There's a lot of opportunity to improve that whole experience and make the whole experience safer and more natural and intuitive."

Users can control Navdy using their voice or with hand-gestures, with the option to customise which notifications are displayed on the screen. It also has Google Maps for navigation, which is obviously an essential feature for drivers, and promises to add Waze and Apple Maps support at some point.

People can pre-order the device, which is expected to start shipping early next year, for the discounted price of $299 for 30 days, and $499 afterwards.

Caroline Preece

Caroline has been writing about technology for more than a decade, switching between consumer smart home news and reviews and in-depth B2B industry coverage. In addition to her work for IT Pro and Cloud Pro, she has contributed to a number of titles including Expert Reviews, TechRadar, The Week and many more. She is currently the smart home editor across Future Publishing's homes titles.

You can get in touch with Caroline via email at caroline.preece@futurenet.com.