Telecommunications

EE pitches 4G Smart Tent at UK's Glastonbury music festival

EE pitches 4G Smart Tent at UK's Glastonbury music festival
The 4GEE Smart Tent will be pitched at the Glastonbury Festival this weekend, fitted out with all manner of high-tech luxuries
The 4GEE Smart Tent will be pitched at the Glastonbury Festival this weekend, fitted out with all manner of high-tech luxuries
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EE is running a competition for Glastonbury-goers to win a night in the 4GEE Smart Tent, along with a Google Pixel phone and a backstage pass
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EE is running a competition for Glastonbury-goers to win a night in the 4GEE Smart Tent, along with a Google Pixel phone and a backstage pass
The 4GEE Smart Tent will be partly solar-powered, to run things like a kettle, fans and a boot warmer
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The 4GEE Smart Tent will be partly solar-powered, to run things like a kettle, fans and a boot warmer
Chief among the 4GEE Smart Tent's niceties is a connected fridge that tweets users when the drink supply is running dry
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Chief among the 4GEE Smart Tent's niceties is a connected fridge that tweets users when the drink supply is running dry
The 4GEE Smart Tent will be pitched at the Glastonbury Festival this weekend, fitted out with all manner of high-tech luxuries
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The 4GEE Smart Tent will be pitched at the Glastonbury Festival this weekend, fitted out with all manner of high-tech luxuries
The 4GEE Smart Tent will act as a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot for nearby Glastonbury Festival attendees
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The 4GEE Smart Tent will act as a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot for nearby Glastonbury Festival attendees
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At a festival like Glastonbury, a tent is usually just a makeshift place to flop for a few hours of shuteye between sets, but for this year's event, British telecomms company EE is pitching a high-tech tent to keep festival-goers connected. Acting as a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot, the kitted-out camper packs VR headsets, voice-activated mood-setting, livestreams of performances, a solar-powered boot warmer and a fridge that reminds you to restock it.

According to EE, the smart features were designed based on feedback from festival fans. A survey said that 47 percent of people thought the only thing missing was a fully-stocked fridge with unlimited drinks – hardly surprising. A comfy place to crash was the top pick by 44 percent of responders, and in third place, 29 percent wanted a fast internet connection.

The 4GEE Smart Tent will help grant some of those wishes. The 4G connection is the lifeblood of the whole setup, supplying internet to the smart devices inside as well as acting as a Wi-Fi hotspot to other nearby attendees. Then there's the fridge, which tweets at users when the drink supply is running dry – and as the host, hopefully EE will take that cue to refill it. A Google Home unit is in charge of setting the mood, changing the lighting and music via voice commands.

The 4GEE Smart Tent will be partly solar-powered, to run things like a kettle, fans and a boot warmer
The 4GEE Smart Tent will be partly solar-powered, to run things like a kettle, fans and a boot warmer

So nobody inside misses the action just outside, six mobile devices suspended from an overhead beam will be livestreaming performances from different stages around the festival. The tent is also fitted with Google Daydream VR headsets, playing 360-degree videos from around Glastonbury, which should make it feel like you're actually there! Oh wait…

A few other niceties will be running off solar power, like a kettle, an array of fans to keep the tent cool in the "hot" English summer, and a boot warmer to keep your tootsies toasty and dry.

With all these high-tech luxuries, the 4GEE Smart Tent will no doubt be in high demand, so EE is running a competition to decide who gets to sleep over. Glastonbury attendees can apply through Twitter for the chance to spend Friday night in the tent, including breakfast in bed the next morning, a backstage pass to one of the performances, and their own Google Pixel phone.

Source: EE

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1 comment
1 comment
minivini
Ok, I just want the basic tent without all the connected gadgets! That'd be an incredible setup for a day on the beach.