This new airplane seat is a connected office, living room and bedroom … all in one
Imagine a world where business travel is just as cozy — and convenient — as being at home or in your office.
In this world, you can spend your time up in the air getting your work done, resting, relaxing or just indulging in some straight-up entertainment, all without ever having to move from your seat.
Wild, right?
Well, Panasonic Avionics has made this world a reality with Waterfront, its latest inflight innovation.
Waterfront is an unprecedented type of business class seat solution, which was developed in conjunction with B/E Aerospace, Teague Design Consultancy and Formation Design group, that is way more than just a seat. It serves as a reclining symbol of Panasonic’s dedication to improving the inflight experience in any technological way possible.
It’s essentially a compact executive office suite, living room and bedroom combination…
On an airplane.
Think about how amazing that setup will make your next business trip.
For years, Panasonic’s engineers and designers have been on a mission to make business travel — and travel in general — the best it can possibly be. Panasonic collaborates with more than 300 airline customers to develop inflight entertainment, communication and connection capabilities that ramp up your air travel leisure and productivity experiences. Right now, more than 1.5 billion passengers per year reap the benefits of these developments on Panasonic-equipped aircraft – a number that’s sure to grow in 2016 and beyond.
Although Panasonic is the undisputed world leader in inflight entertainment and communications, it doesn’t actually build or design seats. Working with B/E Aerospace, Teague and Formation Design Group, the team designed and engineered the high-tech seat and its surrounding area, to completely revolutionize the business class experience.
The B/E Aerospace seat itself is, of course, extremely comfortable and adjustable for whatever your prone preference may be at any given time during the flight: lie down, sit up, sit back — whatever helps you get into the work or relaxation zone you’re looking for. You can also control the temperature and lighting around your seat, and open or close your sliding door for peace and quiet and separation from other passengers.
For its part, Panasonic is providing an environment around the seat itself that makes for an extremely amazing inflight experience: There’s a 24-inch 4K display screen, device charging and personal mood lighting
— all of which are seamlessly connected (through Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC) to your mobile device and the Internet of Things.
The charging aspect of the Waterfront experience is fully integrated and includes AC power, inductive charging and access to multiple USB power ports.
There’s also a premium tablet controller within easy reach that enables you to view relevant flight information. It’s coupled with an ultra-compact handset that’s always easily accessible, even when the seat is in bed position.
Among many other things, the tablet lets passengers control the ambiance of their seat environment by way of full-spectrum LED lighting that shifts in brightness and mood, depending on seat position, which sets up different moods and scenes that go well with different activities you might engage in while up in the air.
