Since announcing our partnership with RealWear® in June 2021, we’ve seen new and existing customers create innovative voice-driven apps for a surprisingly wide range of use cases. The launch of the RealWear Navigator™ 500 opens up exciting new possibilities for our customers to create even more powerful hands-free apps for frontline workers.
This post covers the ground-breaking new features introduced with the RealWear Navigator™ 500 and how they relate to use cases we’ve seen at JourneyApps customers.
Upgraded processor, memory and storage
- The RealWear Navigator™ 500 represents a significant step forward for industrial wearables. (Image source: RealWear®)
The RealWear Navigator™ 500 is a serious product and the upgraded multi-core processor, RAM and flash storage demonstrates that it’s made for enterprise use. Our tests showed smooth navigation with lightning-fast responsiveness to voice commands.
Use Cases
These specs are crucial for modern apps that connect with enterprise systems, access large datasets and run computations on-device. Other, more specific use cases include rendering 3D models in-app (such as for guided work instructions) and connecting with industrial internet of things (IIoT) sensors and transmitters installed on site.
Vibrant, large display
- The new display is larger, clearer and brighter than any head-mounted display we’ve seen. (Image source: RealWear®)
The optical wizardry at play in the display of the RealWear Navigator™ 500 is truly astonishing. As a user, it’s easy to forget that what feels like a high-end 10” tablet display is actually produced from an eyebox an inch or so away from your eye.
Use Cases
Many of our customers have use cases where they need to display large amounts of data to their end users – think of work order information or asset details. The easiest way to do that is through data tables and this crystal-clear display makes it easy to read that tabular data.
Upgraded, low light-optimized camera
- (Image source: RealWear®)
The 48MP camera is best in class by some margin (compare this with new iPhones which come with 12MP cameras). The camera has been optimized for low light, with software and hardware combining to enable astoundingly clear photos even when light is severely limited to about 5-10 lux (full daylight is typically rated at around 10,000 - 25,000 lux).
Use Cases
Inspection and condition assessment use cases clearly stand to benefit from this upgrade, allowing users to take clear photos to use directly in customer reports generated from their RealWear® device.
Durable but lightweight design
- It’s easy to forget you have the RealWear Navigator™ 500 attached to your hardhat. (Image source: JourneyApps)
One of the first things we noticed about the RealWear Navigator™ 500 is how durable it feels while being surprisingly lightweight. It’s fully ruggedized but still about 30% lighter than the RealWear HMT-1. This makes it feel almost weightless when attached to a hardhat.
Use Cases
Users are the chief beneficiaries of this lightweight design, especially those who wear RealWear devices for their full 8-10 hour shifts.
Hot-swappable battery
- A sleek, hot-swappable battery can also be bulk-charged. (Image source: RealWear®)
The term “hot-swappable” means the battery can be fully removed and replaced while the device is in use. This is significant in that it eliminates the need for users to stop or slow down work in order to charge or replace the battery.
Use Cases
This is another improvement directed at users: allowing a single device to be used for long shifts or even for multiple shifts without having to power down the device.
Modular hardware design
- JourneyApps customers have widely varying needs and can now select the hardware components that make the most sense for their own purposes. (Image source: RealWear®)
It’s a testament to the burgeoning use of wearable technology that use cases now often require specific hardware configurations. It’s a testament to RealWear®’s commitment to their customers that the RealWear Navigator™ 500 allows components for the same core device to be upgraded/downgraded to fit these niche requirements.
Use Cases
Swappable camera (including for thermal cameras and inspection cameras), swappable connectivity (including adding 4G and 5G modems), and an upgradable display makes the RealWear Navigator™ 500 adaptable for multiple use cases.
Interested in the RealWear Navigator™ 500?
Learn more about the RealWear Navigator™ 500 here, and contact RealWear directly for any purchases.
If you’d like to see a demo of how JourneyApps runs on the RealWear Navigator™ 500, you can contact us, or schedule an overview directly through this link. You can also follow our tutorial to build an app that runs on RealWear here (the tutorial takes less than 5 minutes to complete).
JourneyApps provides a rapid way to build custom apps for RealWear® HMT, mobile and desktop. Auto voice commands are simple to set up and manage, we provide offline support out of the box, and deploying apps happens with a single click. Comes with prebuilt ERP integrations. If you are interested, please contact us to schedule a demo. You can also visit our RealWear page to learn more and subscribe for notifications about new blog posts.
