Recon Instruments, the Canadian company that delivered the world’s first consumer Heads-up Displays (HUD) for sports, must be doing something right to gain the attention, and investment dollars, of Intel.  The HUD company recently announced that Intel Capital will be making a significant investment to fund its product development, marketing and global sales expansion.  Aside from the cash infusion of an undisclosed amount, Recon will benefit from Intel’s expertise in manufacturing, operations and technology to further the Internet of Things revolution.

“Wearable computing is a major, accelerating phenomenon that re-defines how we use and interact with information,” said Mike Bell, Vice President and General Manager of New Devices Group at Intel.  “In Recon Instruments, we see compelling technology and a solid strategy to capitalize on the wearable revolution.  This is an area of significant focus for Intel Capital, and our investment in Recon Instruments is a key part of our approach to innovation in this emerging space.”

The Recon Jet looks to be a viable contender to the expected crowd favorite, Google Glass.  So it’s only fair that we compare the two devices, right?

Recon Jet vs. Google Glass

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Design

Recon Jet: Weighs only 60 grams, athlete tested display placement, polarized lens, one touch function in all weather conditions, with an interchangeable battery for continuous use.

Google Glass: Adjustable nosepads and durable frame fits any face, extra nosepads in two sizes.

Display

Jet: Widescreen 16:9 WQVGA display, virtual image appears as 30″ HD display at 7′, power-saving sleep mode, high contrast and brightness for readability in high ambient lighting.

Glass: High resolution display is the equivalent of a 25 inch high definition screen from eight feet away.

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Camera

Jet: 720p HD camera

Glass: Photos – 5 MP, Videos – 720p

Audio

Jet: Integrated speaker and microphone

Glass: Bone Conduction Transducer

Connectivity

Jet: Wi-Fi (IEEE802.11a/b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.0 (Bluetooth Smart), Apple MFi Bluetooth support, MEMS GPS/INS Kalman filtering fusion algorithm, Support for connectivity of up to 8 ANT+ peripherals

Glass: Wifi – 802.11b/g, Bluetooth

Storage

Jet:  On-board memory 1GB DDR2 SDRAM, 8GB flash

Glass: 12 GB of usable memory, synced with Google cloud storage. 16 GB Flash total.

Battery

Jet: Interchangeable battery, lasts up to 4-6 hours depending on the nature and number of connected devices and apps running on the device

Glass: One full day of typical use. Some features, like video calls and video recording, are more battery intensive.

Charger

Jet: Micro USB for device charging/power and data transfer

Glass: Included Micro USB cable and charger.

Compatibility

Jet: Android or iPhone

Glass: Any Bluetooth-capable phone.  The MyGlass companion app requires Android 4.0.3 (Ice Cream Sandwich) or higher. MyGlass enables GPS and SMS messaging.

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Additional features

Aside from those, the Recon Jet also features a 1 GHz Dual-Core ARM Cortex-A9, and a 9-Axis sensor which includes a 3D accelerometer, 3D gyroscope, 3D magnetometer, pressure sensor – altimeter & barometer application, ambient temperature sensor, and optical touch sensor for UI control that works in all weather conditions, even with gloves on.

The Winner Is…

Based on the technical specifications, though Google Glass offers a better camera and has more storage, athletes would benefit from the Recon Jet because of all the sensors, and the Jet looks to be less fragile than Glass.

Plus the fact that wearable devices are more suited for active people, at $599, Recon Jet may be worth every dollar.  And there’s an Intel promo to soften the blow to your wallet —  you get $100 off if you enter this promo code: INTEL100.

Still no word on how much Google Glass will actually cost when it hits store shelves.