Experience Dyson's VR store, try hair styling in VR space!?
On November 19, Dyson announced and started offering “Dyson Demo VR”, which allows you to experience Dyson products virtually at home using a VR headset. The corresponding VR headset is "Oculus Quest" and "Oculus Quest 2", and the controller is "Oculus Touch".
I visited Dyson and experienced it because I could try out the hair dryer and curling iron just like in a real store.
[Video] Dyson's official Dyson Demo VR introduction (audio plays. Please be careful)
Download the Dyson Demo VR from the Oculus Quest store. This is the first time I've used Oculus Quest 2, so it's a trial while asking Dyson's staff to teach me how to operate it.
Wear the Oculus Quest 2 and hold the controller (Oculus Touch) in both hands. When entering the VR space, a large screen is displayed in front, and you can listen to product explanations by Dyson engineers. Initially, the presentation will be in English, but support for Japanese audio and subtitles is under consideration.
In front of the screen, Dyson's "Dyson Supersonic Ionic Hair Dryer", "Dyson Corrale Curling Iron", and "Dyson Airwrap Styler" are lined up. In the future, it will be possible to experience a vacuum cleaner in VR, so please look forward to it.
Start with the hair dryer. In addition to the basic dryer, various attachments can also be replaced. You can try out a range of attachments, such as the "Diffuser", which is used to dry curled or permed hair, and the "Floating Control Tool", which pulls long hair forward to reduce floating hair on the surface of the hair.
When you pick up the hair dryer in the VR space, a hair model will appear on the left side of your field of vision. Operate the Oculus Touch controller held in your hand to apply warm air to the hair model. The wind blows not only from the front side, but also from the back side, so I felt that the scene of actually drying the hair was well expressed.
What is unique is that the temperature and air volume of the wind are visualized visually. Hot air is red, cold air is blue. In addition to showing the flow of the wind, the number of lines indicating the flow of the wind increases as the air volume increases.
You can't feel the wind like you do in real life, but it's only in VR that you can grasp the movement with graphic effects. Also, when you change the attachment, the flow of the wind and the movement of the hair change, so you can clearly see the difference between the attachments.
In the case of a curling iron, you can open and close the plate by operating the Oculus Touch controller to hold the VR hair. It is quite realistic to see the swell of the hair disappear when the iron is moved downward while holding the hair. With the Oculus Touch controller, you can move the curling iron back and forth and left and right as you like, so you can check the position and operability of the buttons.
The styler can curl hair in VR. When you change the attachment, the size of the resulting curl changes. The hair that floated gently along with the movement of the wind was a very natural movement.
Even if you curl your hair in VR, it will return to its original state as soon as you press the reset button, so you can try it again and again. Also, it is interesting to see the state of disassembling each product and see what kind of internal structure it has. Such convenience and breadth of contents are one of the things that can be experienced only in a VR space.
Originally, engineers at Dyson are using VR in product development. By checking the movement and operability of the product in VR, we can grasp things to some extent without actually making a prototype. This Dyson Demo VR utilizes many simulation technologies used in Dyson's research and development.
According to Dyson's public relations, "Dyson Demo VR exists to fill the gap between physical stores and online shopping."
Dyson has been operating in Omotesando (Tokyo), Koshigaya City (Saitama Prefecture), Kisarazu City (Chiba Prefecture), Gotemba City (Shizuoka Prefecture), Kobe City (Hyogo Prefecture), and Hiroshima City (Hiroshima Prefecture). We are developing an experience-based shop called Dyson Demo. Dyson Demo is a store where you can actually experience the product, such as cleaning various floors with Dyson's vacuum cleaner and actually setting your own hair with a dryer and curling iron. By actually touching the product, you can not only understand if it is easy for you to use and what functions it has, but also have professional staff teach you the features and how to use the product.
Compared to the hands-on corners of consumer electronics retailers, Dyson Demo is more in-depth, as you can try out products in a calm space, compare Dyson products, and set your hair while sitting in front of a mirror. The experience is the charm. At the Omotesando and Koshigaya stores, there are services such as a hair stylist teaching you how to style your hair, and a service to engrave your hair tool storage box.
Although "Dyson Demo" allows you to understand the appeal of the product by actually experiencing the product, there are many people who are refraining from going out due to the declaration of a state of emergency or who do not have a Dyson Demo in their neighborhood. In that case, you will choose a product at Dyson's official online shop.
Online shops are basically text-based explanations (although recently there are more sites that provide video content). If you have a certain amount of product knowledge, it is easy to understand the differences, but if you are a first-time user, want to know the detailed differences between each product, or if it is easy for you to operate, there is not enough information.
"Dyson Demo VR" has appeared to fill such online disadvantages as much as possible. Although it is VR, it is possible to "experience" the product, so there is no doubt that it is easier to understand the movement, operation, attachment differences, etc. of the product than just reading the text or listening to the explanation.
"Dyson Demo VR" just started. For the writer who is a VR beginner, it is difficult to pick up the product on VR for the first time. I think there are many people like this, so I want a detailed operation guide. Also, in order to make the VR experience of the product effective, it seems that understanding will be deepened if you can tell me the checkpoints.
Currently, the items that can be experienced are Dyson Supersonic Ionic Hair Dryer, Dyson Corrale Hair Iron, and Dyson Airwrap Styler. A cordless vacuum cleaner "Dyson V15 Detect" will be added soon. The Dyson V15 Detect has the ability to visualize fine dust on the floor with a green laser, so it may be suitable for VR experiences.
As for future developments, in addition to being able to shop on VR, they are also thinking about talking to Dyson staff and receiving product explanations. Although it is VR, it is nice to be able to ask various questions to the staff. In the future, we are considering a web 3D version that can be experienced without a headset. It's still rare to explain and experience home appliances in VR, but I'm looking forward to the spread of VR functions and content.