Skip to main content

Turn skiing into a video game: Oakley partners with Garmin for next-gen HUD goggles

oakley partners garmin next gen hud goggles screen shot 2014 10 28 at 23 am
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Just in time for winter, Oakley has unveiled a new and improved version of its popular Airwave ski goggles. This time around, the company teamed up with Garmin to bring additional functionality to the goggs — namely, compatibility with the Garmin VIRB Elite action camera.

As far as we can tell from the company’s press release, the goggles themselves aren’t much different than they were in previous generations. They still contain the same heads-up display technology from Recon Insturments, and aside from the new action cam compatibility and slightly improved graphics, the specs and features are the same.

oakley garmin
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Don’t let that fool you, though; the Airwave 1.5 goggles are still pretty stacked, even without a major hardware update. If you’re unfamiliar, these goggs can track your speed and location via GPS, measure your elevation with barometric pressure data, provide jump/airtime analytics with the help of accelerometers, track your friends on the slopes, control music playback, and even display incoming calls and text messages — all right in front of your eyes.

Recommended Videos

Related: Recon announces new and improved Snow2 HUD goggles

But just when we thought Oakley couldn’t pack Airwave 1.5 with any more tech, the company went ahead and did it anyway. With this new Garmin integration, users will be able to connect the goggles wirelessly to the VIRB Elite action camera (sold separately) and sync video recordings with data and analytics recorded by the Airwave’s onboard sensors. This way, the epic footage of you hucking yourself off that last kicker will be supplemented with data like speed, distance, and airtime stats.

Oakley Airwave 1.5 goggles and the Garmin VIRB Elite action camera are available at Oakley.com, Oakley Stores and select retail destinations.

Drew Prindle
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Drew Prindle is an award-winning writer, editor, and storyteller who currently serves as Senior Features Editor for Digital…
Many hybrids rank as most reliable of all vehicles, Consumer Reports finds
many hybrids rank as most reliable of all vehicles evs progress consumer reports cr tout cars 0224

For the U.S. auto industry, if not the global one, 2024 kicked off with media headlines celebrating the "renaissance" of hybrid vehicles. This came as many drivers embraced a practical, midway approach rather than completely abandoning gas-powered vehicles in favor of fully electric ones.

Now that the year is about to end, and the future of tax incentives supporting electric vehicle (EV) purchases is highly uncertain, it seems the hybrid renaissance still has many bright days ahead. Automakers have heard consumer demands and worked on improving the quality and reliability of hybrid vehicles, according to the Consumer Reports (CR) year-end survey.

Read more
U.S. EVs will get universal plug and charge access in 2025
u s evs will get universal plug charge access in 2025 ev car to charging station power cable plugged shutterstock 1650839656

And then, it all came together.

Finding an adequate, accessible, and available charging station; charging up; and paying for the service before hitting the road have all been far from a seamless experience for many drivers of electric vehicles (EVs) in the U.S.

Read more
Rivian tops owner satisfaction survey, ahead of BMW and Tesla
The front three-quarter view of a 2022 Rivian against a rocky backdrop.

Can the same vehicle brand sit both at the bottom of owner ratings in terms of reliability and at the top in terms of overall owner satisfaction? When that brand is Rivian, the answer is a resonant yes.

Rivian ranked number one in satisfaction for the second year in a row, with owners especially giving their R1S and R1T electric vehicle (EV) high marks in terms of comfort, speed, drivability, and ease of use, according to the latest Consumer Reports (CR) owner satisfaction survey.

Read more