
Cruise Ship’s 80-Inch ‘Virtual Balconies’ Livestream the High Seas - cpncrunch
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2014/02/virtual-balcony-royal-caribbean/
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eric_the_read
Disney's newer ships (the Dream and the Fantasy) have something similar- a
virtual porthole on the inside staterooms that shows a view of the outside.
Being Disney, they went one better: Disney characters will show up on the
screen as well (the house from Up will float by, Ariel could pop up and wave,
etc.) Apparently, these inside staterooms are so popular, they are actually
commanding a price premium on some sailings.

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elwell
At first, I thought: "oh that's cool!" Then, I started to get a sick feeling
in my stomach and realized the future will be mostly virtual. Some broad
questions this made me think of; not necessarily related to this article in
particular: What are the consequences of lying/tricking ourselves? Why
(attempt to) mimic nature? Will we live in a 'fake' world in the future?

Not novel questions, of course, but this article explains a recent
manifestation and progression towards that dystopia.

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lpolovets
There's an interesting philosophical question here: what is the difference
between seeing something in person, or watching it from inside your stateroom
on a retina screen that mimics exactly what you would see if you were outside?

I agree with you that seeing things on the TV screen seems much less
meaningful, but I have a hard time explaining why.

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jevinskie
Simply knowing the truth that the experience is "fake" is enough to ruin the
illusion.

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DigitalJack
Sort of a turing test for illusion.

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discardorama
Net step: get rid of the cruise ship altogether; just roll the cabin sideways
back and forth, while streaming in video from a ship on the seas far away.
Give a discount for this "cruise ship experience" ...

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CaveTech
I love how luxurious the rooms look in the promo pics.

Having been on several cruise ships, someone who could opt for a room that
size could've easily purchased a room with a window.

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The_Fox
> the displays are mounted in the staterooms on either the north or south wall

Wait, what?

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joezydeco
Author must have thought that was more readable by the layperson than "fore-
facing" and "aft-facing"

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pairing
I've been on a couple of cruises and I've always booked the interior cheapest
rooms. I think this a cool feature and the mockup looks terrific but I don't
think I'd find value in purchasing this upgrade. At least for me, the cruise
ship room serves as a changing room & a place to sleep as I'm preoccupied
enjoying all the activities they offer outside of my room.

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Tloewald
How about take the money you'd have spent on the cruise, and install an 80" TV
in your room and a nice high def video of the ocean. For bonus points, buy a
water bed.

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Crito
Well, I've never been on one, but I think the idea of a cruise with a room
like that is that you don't spend all of your time in the room. The main
attraction is really the rest of the ship.

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joezydeco
This is precisely correct, but cruise lines have figured out that they can
upsell passengers by showing them larger rooms with balconies and windows. Why
not splurge - you're on vacation, right?

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lutusp
The next phase will be a virtual cruise, in which you pay thousands of dollars
and go for a virtual ocean voyage from the comfort of your home theater. No
seasickness, no virus infections, no piracy.

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Luc
There was something like this on Norwegian TV, a live broadcast documentary
lasting 134 hours:

[http://www.hurtigruten.us/repository/MARKET-SPECIFIC-
PRODUCT...](http://www.hurtigruten.us/repository/MARKET-SPECIFIC-PRODUCTS-AND-
ARTICLES/UKUSROW/US/general/a-norway-passage-the-most-beautiful-voyage/)

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clintboxe
Lol, my first job out of college was as a DBA for a large US-based cruise
company. I would go out to the ships to work on the databases used to maintain
engine maintenance records. They would put me up in unsold rooms. One time all
the rooms were sold so I was basically in a closet down the hall from the
MORGUE. Where was my bigscreen, WHERE WAS MY BIGSCREEN~! :)

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shenoybr
I don't get it. Why do you have to go out to sea if you are going to
experience it virtually anyway? Couldn't you just have it on land in a room
that also moves based on the waves you see out of the virtual window?

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milesokeefe
It's just for the time you spend in your room. You don't spend the entire
cruise in your room.

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epicureanideal
I wouldn't mind putting some of these in an office to increase my
productivity. Maybe even in my home. It would be nice to always have a
beautiful, sunny view even when I'm coding at 2am.

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nitrogen
The disappointing thing is that they can't be used to watch videos: "And
before you ask: yes, you can turn the screens off, and no, you can’t use them
to stream Netflix."

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Encosia
Might as well stay at home then, buy an 80" TV for what the cruise (plus
overpriced drinks) costs, and skip the Norovirus...

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milesokeefe
Please link me to the 80" $500 TV you speak of.

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Encosia
You're right, I exaggerated a bit much there.

You really could get a good 60-70" 1080 display for what a cruise really ends
up costing for a couple people after the bilk you for all of the things that
aren't part of the all inclusive package though.

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chenster
But...it's not real.

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cpncrunch
It's probably just as good as having a window. You get the same view as you
would from a window, and you can't open the windows anyway. I can think of a
few advantages: first, there is no danger that your window will get smashed in
a storm (probably highly unlikely, but it might be a worry for some people).
Also I assume that the boat rocks less if you are in an inner stateroom, so it
might be better for people who suffer from seasickness.

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greglindahl
Ships are pretty solid. Note in the article that they mentioned using a camera
pointed in the correct direction -- or else it will be noticeably odd that the
image isn't moving like your ear says the ship does.

