Google is ending sales of its Google Glass eyewear. The wearable technology was released in the summer, but the trial is ending to allow developers to work on future versions.

The glasses deliver messages, news and calls directly to a user's field of view - but the technology has not yet caught on.

The company says it is still committed to launching the smart glasses as a consumer product, but will stop producing it in its present form.

It will instead focus on future versions of the gadget, with work reportedly to be carried out by a different division than before.

While the Explorer programme, which gave users the chance to buy a pair for around €1,288, will also close.

The programme was launched in the United States in 2013, and was then launched in the UK last summer.

But from next week, it is believed the search giant will stop taking orders for the product.