The name of the Maps & Directions feature is only half accurate. It can indeed provide turn-by-turn directions, but you won’t see a map anywhere on the Z100’s display or the app. Instead, the app hooks into Google Maps, and pipes the path provided by it into the display as text and direction arrows. The Even G1 has a map, but its resolution is so low it can’t show any labels, so it’s almost completely useless. The Z100 has more than double the pixels, but that still isn’t enough for clearly displaying street names.
The Maps & Directions and Fitness features (Credit: Vuzix/PCMag)
Even without a map, the Google Maps-powered turn-by-turn directions are useful, clearly showing the next leg in your route as text instructions with the distance, street, and direction, along with a large arrow indicating the next turn. It more quickly and reliably adjusts navigation guidance based on your location and the direction you’re facing than the Even G1, which uses an unidentified and much less responsive navigation system. Make sure you have earphones in while you navigate, though; neither pair of glasses has its own speakers, and without earphones, your phone will be shouting every step.
In terms of fitness features, it’s first worth noting the Z100 isn’t designed to be sport eyewear. It doesn’t provide an extra-secure fit or the same wide unobscured view as sporty glasses like the display-less Chamelo Music Shield. It also lacks a formal IP rating, though Vuzix claims it’s “quite capable of resisting sweat, dust, and debris.” Basically, if you want to wear the Z100 when working out, it’ll be about as comfortable as wearing regular glasses.
The Fitness feature is limited to tracking your numbers while you bike, run, or walk. It can show distance, duration, pace, speed, steps, time, and even heart rate if you have a Bluetooth heart rate monitor paired to your phone. It doesn’t integrate with any fitness or health apps, and it doesn’t log your workouts, so you can’t track anything you do outside of each run. The display means you can look at your numbers without glancing at your phone or smartwatch, but that’s the only benefit for fitness tracking against the huge pile of limitations. If you want a good workout tool, consider a smartwatch or a fitness tracker instead.
(Credit: Will Greenwald)
