The main hurdles that we spend a lot of time thinking about are inspiring mass adoption, creating great content, and continuing the discovery of what VR is capable of.

Widening the consumer base is a top priority. VR can (and will) be a revolutionary platform for gaming and entertainment, but we’ve been seeing firsthand just how far the medium can reach. We now have the power to traverse great distances in no time at all and walk a mile in another man’s shoes. VR has the power to transform how people feel about one another. How can VR continue to reshape journalism and news? How can VR affect education and learning? Every new revolutionary technology, be it the cell phone or the laptop, is pushed to the limits by humanity. How do we use this thing in a way where our lives are greatly improved? VR is no different. 2016 will see the continued push to explore how VR can transform existing modes of communication, bring people closer together, and make our lives more streamlined.

Next, creating great content. I think we’re entering a period of rapid experimentation and exploration. I think over the course of the next year we’ll see a lot more narrative exploration in VR. Storytellers are already retraining their brains to think in 360º, and so many great VR experiences already exist. I believe that great storytellers can tell a great story using anything. As more and more companies and studios invest in VR, we’re going to see some really great narrative experiments. We’re still at the infancy of this new art form. It took cinema decades to invent the close-up. Even longer to invent the match-cut. So on and so forth. As technology grows more widespread and the creation of VR experiences becomes democratized, we’re going to hear from new voices.

The simplest way we arrive at compelling content in VR is to imagine what would be compelling to experience in real life. In a lot of ways, VR is the closest we’ve come to inventing a teleportation device. You can take anyone from anywhere and transport them into moments, experiences, and stories. VR can eliminate the proximity between people, places, and things in a way that I haven’t seen done before. It’s helpful to think about what kinds of characters you want your audience to interact with, and how you’ll want the audience to remember them. That’s really what the storytelling goal should be: to create memories. Once you’ve got that in mind, you can reverse engineer everything else. We’re going to start seeing stories that take us to faraway and impossible locations, and stories that blur the lines between our world and the virtual one.

*The views expressed in this editorial are the author’s own, and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of Samsung Electronics.

American radio and television personality Dick Clark once said, “Music is the soundtrack of our lives.”

And he was right, for a number of reasons. Music has the ability to affect our emotions, evoke powerful memories and is the language that connects the world in a way that no other tool can. Music is what makes humans human, and it has done so since the beginning of time.

Unsurprisingly, the ever-advancing technologies of today allow us to effortlessly integrate music into our daily lives, enhancing the way we experience it like never before. From platforms that connect us to our favorite artists to apps that let us be the artist, music continues to evolve, taking cues from the ever-changing world around us.

Recognizing this, Samsung has developed a number of devices and services so that music lovers from all corners of the globe can spice up their lives with a bit of background music, set to their own personalized playlists. Let’s take a look at a few of them.

Samsung’s Milk Music: It Does a Smartphone Good

Source : samsung.com/us

Milk Music is a streaming radio service created by Samsung which offers consumers with compatible Samsung devices access to over 200 curated stations, with a library of 13 million songs. Milk Music allows music fans to browse the collection via a well-developed interactive tuner with the simple swipe of a finger.

The outer aspect of this dual wheel control lets users jump between pre-set genre categories while the fine-tuned inner wheel scans stations within the selected genre. The sophisticated customization features allow users to personalize their Milk experience, and even create their own unique channels.

Unlike most radio apps, Samsung’s Milk Music permits listeners to skip up to six songs per hour on each station, and there are no annoying registration processes or sign-in prompts. Simply download, open, tap and listen.

A Studio on Your Smartphone

Musical instruments are some of the oldest man-made objects ever found. It’s doubtful, however, that our Palaeolithic ancestors would believe their eyes if they had the chance to see today’s modern instruments and music tools, many of which are accessible right from the screens of our smartphones.

Samsung Soundcamp leverages this modern-day accessibility to make it possible for just about everyone — from the amateur beatboxer to the veteran pianist — to unlock their creativity and produce a musical masterpiece or two.

This easy-to-use studio recording system application allows artists to access an ensemble of virtual instruments, including a keyboard, drums and a guitar, to create a song. The app’s plug-in style, open-concept structure also gives users the option to connect and record using real instruments. From the mobile workstation’s soundboard, artists can compose, edit and mix shareable audio files.

Soundcamp is available for free in the Samsung GALAXY Apps store under GALAXY Essentials, and the Google Play store. At the moment, users of Galaxy S6 and S6 edge, Note 4, Note edge and S5 powered by Android 5.0 Lollipop can enjoy the Soundcamp app.

Discover more at Soundcamp App.

Music to Your Ears

While such mobile services and apps have made music more accessible, anytime, anywhere, smartphone speaker quality, in general, leaves much to be desired. Which is why Samsung’s Level series of smart Bluetooth audio products are the perfect devices to amplify the musical moments of your life, without getting tied up in wires.

Offering excellent audio quality and a suite of features, there’s a Level device for just about everyone. The Level Box Mini, for example, is perfect for those who love being the life of the party. The compact wireless speaker packs a big sound and fits conveniently in a purse or backpack, perfect for picnics, parties and poolside gatherings.

The two newest additions to the Level series are the Samsung Level On Wireless headphones and the Samsung Level Link audio adapter, both of which promise the consumer organic sound quality, superior comfort and portability.

The stylish Level On Wireless headphones are available in an array of colors and are equipped with six built-in microphones, an Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) mode and a dual-layered diaphragm system which helps suppress vibration to provide an incomparable audio experience. Change tracks, adjust volume and even answer phone calls with the simple swipe of a finger on the easy-to-use touchpad. And with a battery life of 23 hours per charge, music fanatics can jam out all day and night without having to recharge.