Microsoft’s innovative Kinect accessory has made the leap from video games to robots and even 3-D human holograms. Now it’s being used to sell cars that don’t yet exist. Nissan needed to find a way let potential buyers see its 2013 Pathfinder, but it didn’t have the actual cars in showrooms or ready for auto shows. Kinect to rescue!
While seeing an actual vehicle you can touch or sit in would be ideal, I like what Nissan worked out with Microsoft. The two partnered to create an interactive, virtual reality experience using 3-D graphics of the new Pathfinder combined with voie and gesture-based controls. For example, you can “reach out” and open the door to the Pathfinder by simulating the gesture in front of a Kinect sensor. Walk towards the Kinect and you “enter” the vehicle where you can look around inside. See how it works here:
Someday we’ll likely to use a holodeck such as envisioned in the Star Trek: TNG series where we’re surrounded by interactive sensors and holograms as if they we were somewhere else. For now, however, Kinect is showing a glimpse of that future with a virtual car shopping experience. Besides, I’d give up on the holodeck idea if we could use the Kinect to accelerate or completely remove the car price haggling experience!
Interested in the 2013 Pathfinder experience with Kinect? Nissan will be rolling out the Pathfinder Kinect Experience to 16 dealerships in 13 states, so keep an eye out in your local area.
