CES 2019: Birdly VR machine simulates flying — VIDEO
One of the drawbacks to virtual reality is that, no matter how cool the experience appears on the inside, the user is bound to look like a goof to bystanders.
Birdly, the full-body immersion experience that simulates flight, just may be worth the added embarrassment, though.
Developed by Somniacs, a spinoff from the Zurich University of the Arts, the equipment resembles something you’d find in a top-of-the-line medical office — or a particularly sadistic gym. Participants lie face-down on the machine, using their arms to flap their “wings.”
The experience at CES puts users into the body of a pterosaur, complete with all the appropriate flora, fauna and Jurassic-era dinosaurs below. There’s even a fan blowing in your face to approximate wind.