Travel doesn’t have to be tedious and boring. Nowadays, there are plenty of ways to bridge long waiting times in a fun way. Our tech author Jan Hartmayer, for instance, no longer goes on long trips without his “nerd glasses”.
I am rather an impatient person, and longer travel and waiting times quickly bore me. That’s why I always prepare enough engaging material in the form of games and videos, especially for longer train journeys.
Thanks to handhelds like the Steam Deck, I now even enjoy gaming on the go. Games like Cyberpunk 2077 enhance the experience. Furthermore, many smartphones today have enough power to even become gaming handhelds themselves.
However, all devices share one common problem. The screen is smaller than most monitors, and my posture of looking down is not ideal in the long run.
But thanks to so-called augmented reality glasses, or AR glasses for short, there is a solution to my travel problem.
The Pocket Monitor for On-the-Go
The device projects a virtual screen into the lenses of your glasses. Depending on the model, you see a differently sized display right in front of your eyes. Prices for such gadgets start at around €150 – 200 and can get more expensive depending on features and brand.
With my XReal-Air AR glasses, I always have a wall-sized display with Full HD resolution and 120 Hz with me. I just need to connect the glasses to my phone or Steam Deck via a USB-C cable, and I can start right away. My gadget does not have a battery; it draws its power from the connected device.
For me, it is much more pleasant to watch a game or a video on a large screen than on a smaller phone or handheld display. My posture also improves significantly due to the gadget. The projected screen always moves with me when wearing it, so I can sit up straight without having to constantly look down.
Equally practical are the built-in speakers in the arms of the glasses, which provide good sound for the wearer. Another plus for me is the added privacy, as only I can see my screen. No seat neighbor next to, in front of, or behind me can see the content of my display.
Conclusion: Waiting Times and Boredom Are History
By now, there are several newer models from various manufacturers like Ray-Ban and XReal. These come with AI, new additional features, larger screens, and higher resolutions.
But I don’t need a new model. My older, simple AR glasses are sufficient for me. The screen and resolution are completely adequate for me while traveling, and I am happy to be able to take such a large
display with me on trips.
Additional features like voice control and adjustable screen size sound nice, but in my opinion, they are absolute overkill. Therefore, I gladly forgo them.
Since I always have my glasses with me while traveling, I often forget how quickly time flies, and I no longer get annoyed like I used to about long travel times. For those who like to travel with their entire gaming setup, they can get inspiration from a creative user: Player wants to travel with his gaming PC: will his PC survive the trip on the plane?
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