While some augmented reality headsets are nearly as cumbersome as wearing a VR HMD and others provide a small display for text in one eye, the Lenovo ThinkReality A3 is as easy as slipping on a pair of (normal) glasses yet provide an excellent AR experience.
These glasses have three modes. First, one built-in function is a three display multi-monitor workstation environment. A second is a standard AR mode connected to a workstation with most any AR application. And a third is an "untethered" mode using an Android mobile phone.
Comfortable and convenient
Of the three modes, the first I looked at was the multi-monitor display mode. Especially useful for normal tasks on your mobile workstation, the ThinkReality glasses display a three monitor setup.
It was described as a feature useful for travelling, eg: working with three displays in your hotel room. Given that the workstation displays are only visible in the glasses, I wonder if this might be even better while travelling on a plane or train. For once, you have absolute security for your sensitive documents and designs.
While intriguing, I would like to test it in different environments and spend more time examining the resolution and visual quality. In the few moments that I used it in the Laval Virtual exhibition area, it seemed like the visual quality might not be especially comfortable.
The ThinkReality A3 glasses are comfortable to wear and also work with an Android phone so that you can move freely around while visualizing data and designs in an AR environment.
The second mode uses the glasses connected to your desktop or mobile workstation. Here, the ThinkReality A3 functions well as a light-weight set of AR glasses. They are comfortable so that you can work in AR longer. They slip on and off like normal glasses making it convenient to switch tasks. With integrated speakers and microphones, the glasses can enable remote collaboration for design reviews from any location at any time.
The third mode is connected to a mobile phone. The ThinkReality A3 is plugged into the phone and with the phone in your pocket you are free to move. This can allow for truly creative applications in field service, manufacturing, product design, and engineering.
Last but not least, if you wear glasses already, this device can actually integrate a set of prescription lenses. This feature makes the ThinkReality A3 a very customizable, personal augmented reality device.
