Checking Out Samsung’s IFA Exhibit from Basecamp

All around the spacious, charming café Basecamp, young people are studying, writing, and chatting. But while everyone else is hanging out and relaxing, Michelle is plunging through the atmosphere on a thrilling skydive. She looks at the ground coming up toward her incredibly fast, at the plane above from where she jumped, and her fellow skydiver who took the jump with her.

Of course, Michelle is just in the café, too. Her jump is just part of Samsung’s Virtual Reality Experience Zone, which have been set up at four locations around Berlin for IFA 2015. It’s a chance for the general public to get an immersive sense of the many innovations and creative devices coming to this year’s IFA consumer electronics expo.

After the skydiving introduction comes a detailed 3D rendering of Samsung’s huge exhibition space at this year’s IFA. Viewers can explore all aspects of the Berlin CityCube exhibit—the gastronomical delights of the Club des Chefs kitchen installation, an area dedicated to the latest in UHD televisions, and, in the center of it all, the IoT Zone, where all of Samsung’s new devices come together through the Internet of Things. It’s just like being there in person.

For Michelle, a student at nearby Humboldt University, she said she couldn’t attend the regular IFA. But at Basecamp, a favorite coffee shop, she was excited to try on the VR Gear and check out what Samsung was doing at this year’s expo.

“I’ve never tried VR before,” she said. “It was fun to be so immersed in another world. It was like really being there.”

There are Experience Zones in the popular shopping mall Boulevard Berlin and in two BMW dealerships, but Basecamp offers a very different, laid-back vibe, popular among students in the center of town. It’s all part of Samsung’s “something for everyone” approach to innovation and design, providing different options that are best for each individual. With its affordable coffee, cozy chairs and inviting, open spaces, Basecamp is a good space for students and those who just want to hang out and use the Wi-fi.

After finishing her virtual tour of the Samsung IFA exhibit, Michelle rejoined her friends and went back to work. But there were plenty more students and travelers passing through Basecamp, eager to check out what Samsung had to offer.

All four Experience Zones are operating in Berlin from September 2 (before IFA starts on the 4^th) to September 9, giving everyone the chance to check out the Samsung IFA exhibit. If you’re in town, you should drop by one of the Experience Zones and see for yourself. Or you can see a YouTube version of the VR video here.