Vufine is a handsfree wearable that could replace Google Glass

Google Glass is on hold at the moment. While we wait, Vufine could be a nice stopgap, or even a replacement.

It looks quite similar to Glass, but sounds much simpler to use. Instead of containing computing components, it’s just a wearable display. In other words, it projects whatever’s on your phone’s screen onto your glasses, like a heads-up display. Like Glass, only you can see it.

It can be used like a picture-in-picture display, so you can watch Netflix while you’re strolling down the street, or read text messages and emails as they come in. Fire up Google Maps, and the directions will appear in your vision, so you won’t have to take your phone out of your pocket.

The downside? It’s even uglier than Google Glass. We didn’t think that was possible.

It also has to stay connected to your phone at all times using a thin HDMI cable, which could be annoying.

It’s adjustable for the best fit, and attaches to your glasses using magnets, so is simple to put on and take off. And it doubles as a viewfinder for a camera, so you can hold your snapper at arm’s length and still frame your shot perfectly. There’s no camera inside, which the firm is using as a selling point, as you won’t have to worry about privacy concerns. But obviously you can’t snap photos with it alone.

Read more: Two new versions of Google Glass coming soon says Luxottica CEO

One potential problem is that with your phone in your pocket, the screen will go blank, and so – we assume – will the second display on the Vufine. Presumably the firm has a way around that. We don’t like the idea of being tethered to the smartphone in our pocket either.

It’s passed its $50,000 funding goal and will ship in November. Who knows, maybe it can succeed where Glass has so far failed.