The Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. Now with Google VR goggles
Female nudity's having a bit of an identity crisis.
Playboy has decided it doesn't need it anymore (and advertisers approve).
Meanwhile,
Sports Illustrated has taken years and years trying to edge ever closer
to at least one Playboyesque issue a year -- its swimsuit edition.
This
ever-popular, ever-chaste oeuvre takes famous models and sportswomen to
exotic locations and presents them with very little on. Or very little
Vonn.
This year, skier Lindsey Vonn is merely adorned by body paint as she does pull-ups.
There is, though, a technological bonus for our progressive times. I cede to the magazine's breathless words:
"The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit franchise honors tradition of
innovation by introducing a series of first-of-their-kind virtual
reality experiences."
This is immersion without perversion. This is the ability to ogle with goggles. Specifically, Google Cardboard VR goggles.
This week's launch includes a special edition that includes a pair of Google's cost-effective eyepieces for a mere $9.99, according to Variety. (The regular un-goggled edition costs $7.99).
The VR element was created in collaboration with Wevr,
a company that claims it "makes brave VR." Perhaps bravery these days
involves keeping your clothes on to tease, rather than slowly taking
them off.
You will be relieved that Wevr's technology is both iOS and Android
compatible. It works on PCs too. You don't need to use the Cardboard. It
works with all VR headsets.
Wevr promises on its blog that "the medium's inherent intimacy is maximized at every turn."
I
merely hope that you don't suffer a turn for the worse, as some virtual
reality experiences can cause light-headedness and even nausea.
I
ought to add that if you're in New York or Miami, SI will have
so-called viewing stations to help you experience the full effect.
"We
will have sand so they can feel like they are standing there on the
beach," Chris Hercik, SI Group's creative director told Variety.
And one day, you'll be able to touch. Virtually touch, of course.
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