eMagin Video iPod HMD

On the heels of the iPod VR Mashup, eMagin has come out with a wearable display that is aimed directly at Video iPod owners.

The system, dubbed the EyeBud 800, is another entry in the booming ecosystem of accessories and complementary products that has emerged around Apple's portable music player. But this isn't in the realm of a $20 carrying case. Scheduled to debut in the first half of this year, the EyeBud is expected to retail for as much as $599 -- $200 more than the cost of a 60-gigabyte iPod.

But eMagin's executives are betting that the notion of a virtual big screen will win people over. With the proximity of the screen to the eye, and the magnifying effect of the company's optical technology, the company says that using the headset is akin to watching a 105-inch display from 12 feet away.

I think this may have been an afterthought on their part, but I do think the iPod has been a big influence on wearable computing. For starters, the iPod has got people carrying around huge hard drives, and not thinking much about it. Also they're just miniture computers, as many have proven by installing linux on them. If Video iPods make head mounted displays commonplace like bluetooth headsets are these days, I'm all for the marketing factor.

[ Link via Davy Kreiger. Thanks David! ]