FanVision - echotrue90の日記

FanVision is, in some ways, difficult to explain. We've struggled to swash it lanugo to a single sentence, primarily considering its value is weightier realized when you take wholesomeness of everything it offers. As simply as possible, FanVision is a handheld screen and radio network, which allows patrons peekaboo a live sporting event to swoop far deeper into what's happening in real-time than those who are left to use their own two eyes. For analytics geeks, there's simply no event companion increasingly enthralling.

FanVision at NASCAR

We recently had a endangerment to put FanVision to the test at a pair of NASCAR events. The two venues couldn't be increasingly dissimilar – the first race was a road undertow in Sonoma, Calif., while the second was a three-quarter mile thriller in Richmond, Va. As of now, FanVision's only major consumer touch point is in motorsport (NASCAR, NHRA, IndyCar), despite once stuff misogynist at NFL stadiums and F1 races. We'll touch a bit on that later on in the review, but we wanted to start by painting a picture of how the system unquestionably works.

How it works

Charge it up surpassing race day
Make sure you have a subscription for the event you're attending
Power it on, and the connection to the FanVision network is automatic

At each sporting event where FanVision is supported – NASCAR races, in our specimen – the visitor erects a wireless network that each of its handhelds connect to. If you have a FanVision exhibit and a subscription (also referred to as an activation) to the event you're at, you're golden.

FanVision at NASCAR

It's vital to tuition your FanVision fully superiority of an event. While the shower is good for virtually six hours, plane with the exhibit glaring the unshortened time, you don't want it to peter out mid-race. Once you're at the venue, you just marching the unit up, wait virtually 30 seconds for it to automatically connect to the FanVision network, and start diving in.

FanVision at NASCAR

It's surprisingly simple to swoop into. We're unchangingly wary when it comes to products that a) have to connect to a wireless network where tens of thousands of people are gathered and b) requirement to "just work." Much to our amazement, the FanVision unit unfluctuating immediately and maintained a faultless signal throughout both races that we attended.

In-race benefits

You're giving wangle to real-time audio streams of your favorite athletes
On screen, there's loads of data to unriddle and enjoy in real time
You have wangle to information that others don't, and that just feels so, so satisfying

So, it's easy to use. Awesome. But, what does it unquestionably do? In a nutshell, it massively enhances the live event experience, and somehow, manages to not get in the way of unquestionably savoring the event itself. We've all seen the guy or gal totally missing the moment due to stuff veiled in a screen (typically a smartphone, but occasionally a Tamagotchi), but FanVision isn't that.

FanVision at NASCAR

It probably helps to get a bit of preliminaries on how motorsport is conventionally enjoyed. You see, these vehicles emit decibel levels that'll darn near deafen you if you sit in the stands for hours without ear protection. So, most folks bring their own earplugs, which do a wonderful job of ensuring that you can still hear your neighbors yelling at you when you're 70. Regrettably, they moreover do a lovely job of removing you from the excitement, giving your mind plenty of time to ponder how few Pokemon you've managed to reservation in the past week.

FanVision at NASCAR

FanVision reckons that if you're going to wear ear protection, you might as well pump something uneaten into your ear waterway at a unscratched decibel level. Hardcore race fans know that they can bring their own scanners to the track in order to hear the satiricalness that occurs between suburbanite and pit crew, but FanVision takes that to an entirely variegated level.

FanVision at NASCAR

When booting the unit up, you're given the opportunity to select up to three favorite drivers. Then, inside the Scanners pane, you can hands toggle between in-race communications from those drivers and the main race commentary that covers the unshortened field. Crucially, FanVision can automatically pipe in the main race commentary by default, and then cut to your driver's scanner whenever they (or their pit crew) uncork conversing.

FanVision at NASCAR

So, as you're sitting in the stands ogling the action, you're getting an earful of commentary and/or insider information directly from the suburbanite you're pulling for. The wits is as tropical to getting inside of the car as you're going to get, and quite frankly, it's enrapturing.

FanVision at NASCAR

In the two races we attended, we had Team Penske earmarked as favorites: Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. Considering that both of these drivers are – shall we say, dominant – they proved to be quite heady to watch. Phase 1 is the rush of hearing insider peep between suburbanite and pit crew, where they discuss topics like steering adjustments, plans for their next pit stop, timings of drivers that are in front of and overdue them, and if they're well-spoken on the top or marrow lane to well-constructed a pass.

For statistics and analytics nerds, there's really nothing better. You're getting a live, unfiltered, real-time listen at the smart-ass of a professional athlete as he or she corresponds with the engineers responsible for giving them an whet on the track.

FanVision at NASCAR

Phase 2 is the on-screen goodness. We spent most of time on the video feed at the Sonoma road course, but in Richmond – where you can see every turn from practically every seat in the grandstands – we kept it locked on the leaderboard. Here, your favorite drivers are stock-still up top, with the rest of the grid listed unelevated in order of position. Last lap time, total pit stops, and time overdue the suburbanite superiority of them is all listed out. It's a veritable smorgasbord of data, giving math junkies plenty to chew on as they extrapolate how many laps it'll take a suburbanite to pass flipside if they protract transmissible up at their given pace.

FanVision at NASCAR

FanVision is an incredible wing at round tracks like Richmond International Raceway, but it's simply vital at road courses like Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International. With road courses, no one seat is given a view of the unshortened race. So, oddly, there are moments when a pack of cars zoom by, and then a number of worrisome seconds that roll by surpassing you see them come virtually then to your vantage point. Here, FanVision shines brightest. The video functionality pipes live footage from all corners to your screen, enabling you to never lose sight of the grid – plane without they've left your very purview.

Acquiring a FanVision unit

You can rent ($50/race) or buy ($300) a FanVision display
Renters can rent and return right at the venue
You can use your own earphones or headsets if you'd rather

FanVision at NASCAR

FanVision sells its controller for $300, which includes a subscription to every race in the NASCAR season. You'll have to pony up a bit increasingly if you're without a sound-reducing, speaker-infused headset, but the good news there is that it's not proprietary. Unlike Apple's iPhone 7 (ahem), the FanVision exhibit has a standard 3.5mm headphone port. You can pick up your own headset on Amazon or elsewhere, and a headphone splitter works wonders if you're peekaboo a race with a friend and want them to share in the excitement.

FanVision at NASCAR

If you're increasingly of an occasional fan, FanVision rents its exhibit and a single headset for $50 per race weekend, which gets you wangle to every NASCAR-affiliated event over a three-day span. If you want to double up and get a second headset, tack on $15. If you plan on peekaboo a half-dozen events over the undertow of a season, you're largest off ownership the hardware.

FanVision at NASCAR

At the venue, FanVision has unmissable trailers established on various sides. We noticed virtually four or five per event, with six or so registers per trailer. Most patrons waited less than five minutes to be served, and those who had pre-ordered a rental online superiority of the event were in and out in just seconds. For what it's worth, we'd strongly recommend pre-ordering if you're unrepealable you're going to an event; you'll save $10 or so, and everything's waiting for you upon arrival.

FanVision at NASCAR

After the race, you simply return your rental gear in the bag that it was given to you in. While we expected long return lines, that process took virtually three minutes. Despite huge crowds, FanVision's event staff seemed to be a well-oiled machine, taking the hassle out of renting and returning in the same day.

For the Richmond race, we procured a FanVision unit superiority of time, which was plane better. No stopping at a trailer surpassing or without – just show up at the race, turn it on, and enjoy.

Enhancing the experience

FanVision at NASCAR

Before we swoop in too deep here, it's worth reiterating just how seamless the FanVision wits is. The connection is firsthand and solid, and the shower is seriously impressive. We still had virtually 20 percent remaining without a 4.5-hour overtime race in Richmond. The audio feed is delayed, at most, half a second, which is tropical unbearable to real-time that it's imperceptible in practice. The video feed doesn't stutter not one iota.

FanVision at NASCAR

What's most remarkable is just how well the unshortened streaming process works; it contrasts starkly with our iPhone 6S Plus sitting just abreast it, which can't plane get an Instagram post through due to network saturation that occurs so commonly at huge events.

FanVision at NASCAR

We were worldly-wise to compare the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race in Richmond from 2015 (where we didn't have FanVision) to the word-for-word same race in 2016 (where we did have FanVision). The difference is significant, to the point where we wouldn't recommend splurging on a NASCAR weekend without moreover budgeting for FanVision. Feeling the earth rumble as 40 high-powered motorcars scream by at breakneck speeds is never not going to be awesome, but the wealth of ingredient data – from driver-to-crew audio to mounds of real-time lap data – instantly spoils you.

FanVision at NASCAR

Rather than wondering how fast a given suburbanite is transmissible up to flipside driver, a glance at FanVision provides the answer. It's important to point out the operative word there: glance. FanVision is perhaps the most glanceable piece of glanceable technology we've overly used, and therein lies the charm. You aren't expected or required to alimony your squatter veiled in the screen as the event unfolds in front of you. The designers realized from the jump that FanVision would only be enjoyable if it could provide vital information and wordplay race-related questions at a glance, and that's exactly what it accomplishes.

FanVision at NASCAR

Couple that with the squatter that the obvious volitional – trying to find this data via your smartphone – only really works if you're using Sprint, and it becomes plane increasingly alluring. (For those unfamiliar with NASCAR events, Sprint is the lead sponsor. Mysteriously, Sprint moreover seems to be the only carrier with a functional network at NASCAR events. We'll get Scooby-Doo on the specimen post-haste.)

Second screen questions

FanVision at NASCAR

In our estimation, the value proposition of FanVision is undeniable at a NASCAR event. Yeah, it roughly doubles the forfeit of peekaboo for a single person (as it's typically possible to nab a seat for virtually $50), but we'd say that the enjoyment and immersion is roughly doubled as well.

FanVision at NASCAR

You need to be a fan to really enjoy the real-time audio and data, of course, but that's why "fan" is right there in the name. If you're just peekaboo a live sporting event in order to fill a void in your Saturday or Sunday night, it's a toss up. We could totally see FanVision pulling you plane closer to a sport that you didn't know you were into, but there's moreover a unrepealable value of understanding required to fathom the sheer quantity of information that's at your fingertips.

But, if FanVision is so great, why isn't it supported at NFL and F1 any longer? And why haven't we heard anything well-nigh expanding into arenas vastitude motorsport? It feels like the idea compassion for MLB, for example, which tends to inject a lot of lulls between whoopee events.

FanVision at NASCAR

Part of the rencontre is the proliferation of the smartphone. It's easy to oppose that patrons of sporting events once have the hardware in their pocket to do the things that FanVision does. If you show up with an iPhone in hand, what's the goody of bringing yet flipside piece of proprietary hardware? As of now, we can see only two: largest shower life, and easier wangle to a high-speed, flicker-free network stream of information.

FanVision at NASCAR

There's no question that sporting leagues the world over are spending a lot of resources to enhance the fan experience. Ticket prices are skyrocketing, and marketing departments are pushing defended apps, hashtags, etc. to bring fans closer to the teams they favor. It remains to be seen if there's room in an increasingly mobile world for defended hardware.

FanVision at NASCAR

Perhaps FanVision can pivot into an apps and services visitor that works on the phone you're once bringing into an arena, but solving the network infrastructure problem won't be an easy one. Conventional cellular networks struggle mightily in crowds, and plane the beefiest of enterprise routers have a tough time handling petabytes of data from tens of thousands of devices crammed within a single stadium.

FanVision at NASCAR

In the here and now, however, FanVision is a no-brainer if you're a fan of motorsport. Strange as may sound, it's impressive unbearable to justify lugging yet flipside gadget into a venue. Just be sure to do yourself a favor and tune into Team Penkse – those guys are good.