The company PORTL is trying to compete with Zoom and other video conferencing platforms to create a new way of virtual interaction through holographic communication.
Inspired by Hologram Tupac
Holograms aren't exactly rare in this day and time, with some industries already using them, most especially the show business where they use holograms of artists who have passed away to perform in front of present-day audiences, such as the case of Tupac Shakur, who performed at the 2012 Coachella Music Festival years after his death.
According to a report by InsideHook, the holographic Tupac performance became the company's inspiration to create the Epic HoloPortl machine, a phone booth-sized device that promises to "beam live hologram into your home."
The HoloPortl machine is described as a "when you can't BE there, BEAM there" technology by company founder David Nussbaum.
According to Nussbaum, the technology should provide a more immersive communication with other people despite the distance compared to video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, which has gained popularity this year with the coronavirus pandemic.
However, there's a catch.
Not Exactly Hologram?
The HoloPortl machine isn't exactly a hologram, at least not like in those sci-fi movies that show holograms from a flat device or the like.
The machine actually uses stretched, transparent 4K LCD screens that are embedded in the light box that gives the impression of a 3D hologram.
It works at any time of the day, transmitting images that the machine will interpret as a "hologram."
And like with other video conferencing platforms, people can beam their images to any HoloPortl machine around the world, and they will be able to hear what the people around the PORTL would say and respond to them.
However, you'll need to have $60,000 to get one of these machines.
The HoloPortl machine has also been used quite recently during the virtual ComicCon event in Los Angeles as well as the 2020 Emmy Awards, plus the company has also distributed several of the devices to some malls, movie theaters, and airports.
Bringing the PORTL to Everyone
Nussbaum believes that PORTL will now become mainstream, especially during the pandemic where everyone is still forced to stay indoors and interact with each other virtually.
The founder of PORTL also thinks HoloPortl machine will be more common as chief executive officers of companies will want to beam themselves during meetings, or celebrities using the device to attend concerts and gigs virtually.
The company is now working on a miniature version of the machine in the size of a desktop that is geared towards the ordinary homeowner.
That is the goal of the company after raising $3 million from the investors Tim Draper, awards-show producer Joe Lewis, and former Electronic Arts executive Doug Barry, as per TechCrunch.
Moreover, Barry is also becoming the company's first chief operating officer.
The miniature version of the machine will be bundled with content such as Mirror and Peloton, which will be available for $39 to $49 a month.
"When I started this, I thought it was going to be a novelty company," Nussbaum said. "When the pandemic hit, he knew we needed to do much more than that."
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Written by: Nhx Tingson
