Argus II Retinal Implant

The bionic eye is coming to America to help patients with the degenerative eye disease retinitis pigmentosa...  At least by a little bit. It is a device that looks very much like glasses with a camera that sends signals to an implant in the retina. It is called Argus II and the implant has been available in Europe for nearly two years before American approval. Out of the 32 patients tested in the U.S., the best visual acuity acquired had been 20/1260, which is not better than legal blindness (20/200 in America). It uses light to give user's a basic outline of their surroundings, which does not provide for colors to be recognized.

Below is a video from the New York Times demonstrating the use of the Argus II implant: