WIRED Store in NYC Event Review

By Eddy

A couple of days before Thanksgiving the WIRED Store in NYC had a press day before their grand opening.  Located in the Meat packing district in Chelsea, It gave us lucky few the opportunity to walk through the store and speak to the various representatives of each product and learn  a little more about their companies.

As you can tell by the picture they were still in the process of putting the whole event together.  Builders were still building, painter’s painting, the actual staff of the store were also getting their orientation on what things were in the store;  and more specifically what to do if some one was dumb enough to try to stop lift (not that it was too big of a worry since every gadget and item was electronically rigged and basically bolted to the floor)

The big theme of the Store was what is your one WIRED wish?  You could then go on various laptops located through out the store and enter into a contest in which you put in your wish and possibly could end up winning 10 grand worth of prizes.  Check it out here its free to try, you also get a chance to see what various celebrities put as their one wish.

Some of the cooler stuff that I ran across during my time there:

The Powermat

I thought that this was a great idea.  With all crap wires that I carry around with me when ever I travel or am at home this would help fix that problem.  The powermat is pad that with a certain insert or cover for your mobile device will automatically start charging the instrument when placed on the pad.  It is much cooler than it sounds.  With different versions for home and travel, the powermat can be taken any where and will ultimately reduce the number of cables and wire that you need for each device.  This is great for a frequent traveler like me.  I am not sure how many times I have either forgotten a cable at home and been up a creek without a paddle or even worse forgotten the charge cable at the hotel, (“just have them mail it to you”, you say. Well if the hotel is in India or Europe the cost for that goes up pretty significantly). 

Kapitall.com

This is a financial website built for all levels in mind.  While there seems to be no end to the number of Financial website out there including the biggies at AOL, Yahoo, and MSN, Kapitall has managed to stand out in the crowd.  With its focus on newbie investors and learning, the site allows someone to come in and begin to learn more about what is happening to their money in their 401K or investment portfolios.  The real highlight is the interface of the website, which is unlike anything I have seen before.  It is more like a Wii video game when compared to traditional sites including status bars and achievements through out the site which are supposed to increase understanding of the site..  This should create a strong attraction to newcomers as it is easy to understand, in addition, the popups on the site help the user navigate through   As I become more comfortable I hope to write a bit more about the site and all it has to offer.

E-Moto Bikes

One of the more popular areas was the e-moto bikes.  These are bikes with a connected battery to provide a bit of oomph when you are struggling on a hill or any other obstacle.  The bikes were ingeniously designed to fold up which is perfect for travelling in the city as well as allowing for the to be stored in smaller areas.  With various designs from rugged mountain bikes to more recreational beach type bikes there is a little bit of everything.  While the top of the line bikes with all the bell and whistles can cost a pretty penny, there are different levels with various features that are reasonably affordable when taking into the account of the cost of similar bikes and the quality of workmanship put into each bike.

Dolby

If you have gone to the movie or have a home theater system you have certainly heard of Dolby .  They were at the Wired Store to display a number of their new technologies and Dolby integrated products.  Just sitting in the home theater set up allowed you to get the full effect of the Dolby surround sound experience, even in a large crowded store, I can only imagine how it would be in my home.  One thing that will surely be on my wish list was a theater system with Dolby True HD, which basically plays movies exactly how the filmmaker wanted it to be heard.  From the little that I have experience there is certainly a difference in the quality.  One of the more innovative integrations of Dolby’s technology was in laptops and cell phones.  As we come to rely on these portable devices to be the medium in which we view entertainment it is only logical that Dolby include it’s technology in order to render a truly immersive experience.

These were only a fraction of the things that I saw.  On top of everything else I saw the store in conjunction with various sponsor will be having a number of special events through out December.  One that I am particularly excited about is the ifit treadmill event on December 16th, the ifit treadmill has a flat screen tv attached and basically lets you chose various trails through out the world and let you virtually run or walk them through the screen, with a GPS map also showing you where you are in your run, it sounds so cool.  Check out the other events below (directly from their website):

  • Check out our interactive mural, in collaboration with Moby
  • Get your game on in our Tony Hawk-inspired Gaming Lounge
  • Go green with Adrian Grenier
  • Sunday Game Day Lounge
  • Play along with our Geek Dad demos on Saturdays (next one is 12/12)
  • Spend Sunday in our Game Day Lounge
  • Get your gadgets laser-engraved by tattoo artist Scott Campbell
  • Demo the coolest gifts to give and receive

Head out to http://www.wired.com/promo/wiredstore/ to see the entire catalogue or take a trip to the city

The WIRED Store is located at:
415 West 13th Street
(between 9th Avenue & Washington Street)
New York City

The store will be open until December 27, so check it out soon before it closes for another season.

Disclaimer: I was invited to the store as part of the press.  These are my opinions on the products I saw.

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