Google has been showing the Mirror API for its forthcoming Google Glass wearable devices at SXSW in Austin, Texas. 

The API will enable developers to incorporate Glass timeline cards – the brief notifications which can include text, images, rich HTML and video – as well as Google+ sharing, voice recognition, text-to-speech and camera functionality into their apps.

With no one outside the company having got their hands on a Glass yet – though that is set to change shortly – even small peeks into how exactly the device will work is still a rather exciting prospect.

As well as demonstrating a selection of Glass apps including Gmail, the New York Times, and Evernote, Google senior developer advocate Timothy Jordan shared a few rules for developing for Glass, such as opting for headlines over full stories, keeping data as relevant as possible, and not using push notifications to inform users about an app update. The theme seems to be not distracting or overloading users – something that has been a concern since Glass was first announced.

Meanwhile, back in the world of smartphones, Google has also rolled out a redesign of its Gmail mobile web app.