Word: virtual
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...That's why the creators behind Near London are betting that they can coax crowd-weary bargain hunters into the district via virtual reality. Near London is a 3D cyber-version of the West End that its developers say is the most realistic and accurate virtual recreation of a city center ever produced. Launched Nov. 30, it is indeed impressive-looking, thanks to a laser-scanning technology that picks up details down to one fifth of an inch (5mm) and faithfully depicts every brick and slab of concrete. Once users download the software (which is free), they can stroll...
...also face some competition. Popular virtual world Second Life has let gamers visit reproductions of parts of London for several years. And German cyber-tourism site Twinty, which lets people visit a virtual Berlin and Singapore, is also preparing a London launch. But, unlike Near London, shopping isn't the prime focus of those sites. Instead they're about setting up a cyber-life for your virtual alter ego, or avatar, complete with its own apartment and wardrobe. (See a Techland exclusive: the first look at Avatar's 'Interactive Trailer...
...Nick Gibson, an analyst and virtual-world expert at London's Games Investor Consulting, calls it "an interesting idea." But he cautions that the main driver for online shopping "is price and convenience, rather than the social aspects of it." Most consumers, Gibson says, go online to buy something specific, so it's uncertain if they'll find causal shopping and browsing appealing. (See the top 10 video games...
Next spring Polo Ralph Lauren is planning virtual shows for its less-expensive Lauren line as well as its children's line. But the company isn't ready to present its most prestigious line, the Ralph Lauren collection, online. "It's certainly up for debate," says Lauren. "It's making us think differently about how we show our product and how we can show the Ralph Lauren collection...
...polls on Jan. 19 in the special election to fill the late Ted Kennedy's U.S. Senate seat, some GOP analysts are painting the race as a referendum on one of the most divisive political issues around. The fact that Republican candidate Scott Brown has pulled into a virtual dead heat with Democratic nominee Martha Coakley - prompting President Obama to stump with her this week - is, they say, an indictment of the pending congressional health care overhaul. Much is at stake in the balloting. Coakley would provide Democrats with a critical 60th aye vote, preserving the party's filibuster-proof...