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Is the $1500 price tag for Google’s Project Glass a little high for you? Instructables contributor meztek has a guide for building a wearable computer for just under $400.

The secrete sauce comes in two parts: a $35 (plus shipping) Raspberry Pi computer and a pair of the cheapest glasses you can find with a built-in monitor. In this case, that’d be the Vuzix Wrap 920, which are available from Amazon for $196.

In a nutshell, the whole system consists of a Raspberry Pi running Raspbian Linux, the video glasses, a battery pack that runs on rechargeable AA batteries, a wireless thumb keyboard with a built-in touchpad, and a few cables.

What you end up with is a portable computer that you can carry in your pocket and a monitor that you can slide up or wear like a necklace when you’re not using the display.

Unlike Google Glass, this system covers your eyes — so you can’t see the world around you while you’re surfing the web or checking your email. But Meztek plans to incorporate a camera into a future build, so you can see what’s on the other side of the glasses.

Sure, it’s not the most elegant wearable computing solution, but it’s a surprisingly affordable one. The video glasses alone make up about half the cost.

via Raspberry Pi