I never really had any personal interest in Google Glass when it first came out. Sure, the idea was cool enough, and the hardware wasn't ridiculous in any negative way, but it never really grabbed my attention as a device I might want for myself. I couldn't picture it being a product I'd use every single day, which meant I couldn't justify the price tag.

That was years ago, and yet, on most days, I still feel the same way.

That started to change last weekend, though. The reason? I was actually in a position where a pair of augmented reality glasses might actually come in handy. Now, I think one of the most obvious use cases for AR glasses is navigation, and it's one of the reasons why you see it teased when AR glasses do make it into the news cycle. But in most cases you see it promoted with a person walking around a busy city, navigating down a sidewalk looking for their next destination.

That's why that feature never really spoke to me until now. But it's absolutely one of the best reasons why AR smart glasses should be a thing already. And I wasn't even in a city when I realized I could really use a pair in the moment.

Personally, I think AR glasses could be even more helpful for hikers and backpackers. For the folks who like to get lost (without actually getting lost, mind you) in the wilderness. And it's not like you have to pick some trail that's out there in the middle of nowhere, either. It could be one that's pretty close to civilization and AR glasses could definitely still come in handy.

That's the situation I found myself in last weekend. A trail that was barely even a mile away from the road, and yet it had a lot of adjoining trails that were all relatively unmarked. You started on one and you could very easily find yourself on another, going in a direction you didn't intend. And that's when I wanted a pair of AR glasses. I didn't want to have to keep my phone out to follow the predetermined path on the downloaded map. (Don't get me wrong, this is very helpful in its own right.) AR glasses, with a very distinct blue line to follow when I needed it, would have been a big boost in the moment.

I don't know what I want out of a design, though. Maybe something just more traditional, and not something so "futuristic" as the original Google Glass design. This is still the biggest question mark for me.

I hope if AR glasses do become the next "big thing" that apps and services like AllTrails can figure out a way to take advantage of it. And that's why I'm now genuinely looking forward to AR glasses. I might not use it every day, but it could quickly become a very important tool when I do need it.

What about you? Are you excited about the idea of AR glasses in general? Or are you hoping this is a trend that never picks up any speed? Let me know!