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Pepsi Max Augmented Reality Bus Shelter Shocks & Surprises (Video)

 

Looks like Pepsi is taking augmented reality to the MAX in this new bus shelter in London.

Meant to give commuters an unbelievable moment, the bus shelter is also a kind of prankvertisement in that it's meant to shock and surprise while it simultaneously delights.

I do wonder about the specific demographics for this initiative - I'd have to see central London bus ridership statistics - but on its face, this looks to be a fun way to build some serious buzz.

Which is true to the Pepsi MAX brand.

How is your brand ramping up for the AR revolution? Better get with it!

Read more in Creative Boom here.

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Live Augmented Reality Experience Lets Kids Fight Pirates (Video)

 

GEN WOW readers know I dig AR in genera, and Live AR in particular. This implementation from a shopping center in Australia is a nice way to enable kids to engage in a lively AR experience that they can then share via social media.

The experience, from Brisbane-based digital signage integrator Prendi, features a large monitor screen where kids and those around can view the action. It's unclear if there is true motion-based interactivity, or just the illusion of it.

A client of ours is testing a solution for a major kids retail brand today that enables onscreen characters and elements to react to kids movement.

We'll share the results of the test when we have them.

How might your brand use Live AR? How can it engage your target consumer and enliven their interactions with you? It's the wave of the future - and you don't want to miss out.

Read more about Prendi's mall experience, here.

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'First Sniff': A Parody of 'First Kiss.' With Dogs. (Video)

 

"First Kiss" has gone from smooch to pooch.

On the heels of word that the video - in which 20 complete strangers are asked to kiss on camera - had gone supernova and hit 11 million views in a matter of hours (it stands at almost 50 million views at last check), the next phase of viral hype cycle began.

 

First came word that it was really an ad for an up-and-coming fashion brand. Then came the parodies. Jimmy Fallon did his own, with puppies and kittens, called "First Lick."

  

And then there's "First Sniff" (top), which takes it to a whole new level.

But some extensions have been more heartfelt: Gen Wow Twitter follower Frederick de Wachter in Belgium sent me this video from a television program called Volt, where his team went out and asked TRUE strangers to kiss on camera. It's hard not to be pulled right in.

 

But what's your view?

Is "First Kiss" the most overhyped (and most ripe for parody) online video sensation ever? Or is it truly as sweet as it aims to be? (And would you participate if asked to kiss a stranger?)

And which is better? The spoofs and spinoffs, or the real thing?

Pucker up and give us your input - or go ahead and give us the kiss off.

But please, just don't videotape it.

 

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Have a Coke and a 'Shhhh': Coke Inserts You into Films to Squash Noise (Video)

Now if Coke could just get theaters to find something less loud to munch on than popcorn. A nice reminder to kindly shut up.

Read more, here.

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OpenPool: Kinect-Powered, 3D Projection Awesomeness (Video)

 

It's not every day you use the words "breakthrough" and "billiards" in the same sentence.

But clearly, this next-generation pool table – which made its premiere this week at SXSW - promises to bring a whole new level of liveliness to bar-side bets and friendly wagers everywhere.

The breakthrough part, however, doesn't stem from this game, which uses Kinect and projection technology to enhance game play.

It comes when you realize that nothing shown in this YouTube video couldn't soon also be writ large - from arena paintball to the Super Bowl-size excitement.

Imagine fields or even city blocks transformed into holodecks, for all manner of games and adventures where you carve your way through chaos to achieve your objective. And where someday, wearable, haptic sensors mean you don't just thrill to each laser blast, you feel it, and where objects don't just respond to your movement, you respond to theirs.

In this scenario, you don't watch a movie or play a game - you live it.

Early days, yes.

But you don't need a magic eight ball to envision the excitement to come.

Read a release on OpenPool - and the technology (and Kickstarter campaign) behind it, here.

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Enter: The Oreo 3D Vending Machine & the Bacon Alarm Clock (Video)

 

Okay, there's only video for one of these, but I think they both sound like a lot of fun.

Oreo is launching a "Oreo Trending Vending Machine" that creates Oreos using 3D printing technology, to be launched at SXSW.

The initiative comes via a partnership with Twitter that includes "trending flavors" based on trending social conversations, which customers can then select to watch their cookies being built. It sounds like it takes about two minutes - which seems like a long time wait - but hopefully novelty will trump timeliness in this case.

Meanwhile, Oscar Mayer has unveiled a new "Wake Up & Smell the Bacon" device the plugs into your iPhone. When the alarm goes off, you get the smell and sound of sizzling bacon.

Hat tip to the Chicago Tribune for both finds: Two tasty examples of brands using new technologies to connect with - and serve - super fans like never before.

How might your brand do the same?

Read more, here.

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