Just to show that they can’t all be winners, Samsung has launched what it believes will be the future of dining. It’s the responsibility of this publication to tell you it’s a very dark future indeed.
Fresh off the genius of the smart fridge, announced at CES, Samsung has made another interesting announcement about the future of virtual reality.
(Editor’s Note: I’m a little biased about this because I think even having a cellphone on the table while you’re eating is rude. That’s nowhere near wearing something that covers your whole face and allows you to be anywhere else. Emily Post is probably rolling in her grave.)
Basically, a restaurant would figure out how to pair their food with an experience of “traveling” elsewhere using the technology. It’s supposed to act as an additional draw for customers, but this technology tends to become the only draw for customers. It might find a niche market in a large, touristy city, but it probably won’t fly with businesses that count on return business.
Even Samsung admits that it’s mostly the “wow factor” that gives this idea any potential at all. It’s not a great notion, but the press release does include a flowery description of what this experience could be like.
It reads, “You dine on the first course of the meal in a garden in Tuscany, surrounded by flowers with a winery in the distance. You adjust your Samsung Gear VR glasses as a cool wind blows and you catch the rich fragrance of the gardens. But when your main course arrives, you now find yourself underwater with dolphins playing and fish swimming. Your Italian table setting has been transformed into an underwater experience and the light in the room has changed to reflect the underwater scene. You can even see bubbles arising from your drinks and water splashes on the table in 3D.”
This seems like an example of finding an application for technology, versus finding a technology that helps with a specific problem. It feels forced because the market for virtual reality isn’t quite where everyone thought it would be. It’s been plagued with design problems, overpriced devices, and technology snags, but mostly no one can figure out a popular use for it, thought there have been interesting novel applications. This is neither a popular nor a good use for virtual reality.
The technology for these “adventure” already exists because you’re essentially slapping a phone on your face. Restaurants would have to purchase a version of Samsung’s VR series, which includes two models: Gear VR Innovator Edition for S6 and the Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition for Note 4 for Business. The business version, which is available for a pretty reasonable $199.99, uses Galaxy Note 4’s Quad HD Super AMOLED® display to simulate a 175″ screen and a 2.7 GHz Quad-Core processor. It works with Oculus to make an experience that’s “ultra immersive.” It has a few different sensors, including an accelerator, gyrometer, geomagnetic, and proximity. You plug the smart phone into the headset via a microUSB, figure out how to calibrate it, and away you go.
If you have a burning desire to eat underwater to escape the inanity of your own dining companions, go ahead and find a restaurant with this set up and enjoy.
