Orange, a wireless carrier in Europe, has put together this sweet tent for the Glastonbury that I really hope we start to see in stores really soon. The tent features photovoltaic fabric (solar panels built from fabric, basically) that allow the tent to be whatever form factor you want, without the need for rigid solar panels destroying the aesthetics. It also features Glo-cation technology, which uses either SMS or long-range RFID to ‘activate’ the tent, making it light up, so you can find it easier among the throng of other tents at Glastonbury.
The tent also includes a groundsheet heating element that’s embedded in the tent’s floor. When the internal temperature of the tent falls below a preset level, the floor heats up, providing warmth for all inside. Totally cool (or hot). There is also a wireless control hub that powers a small LCD display, as well as WiFi and other connectivity stuff.
I definitely don’t condone the idea of technology in my camping tent, such as an LCD display or WiFi, but the solar panels, glo-cation, and heated floor are awesome examples of technology enriching and enabling real life. Imagine how useful that would be for trekking in the wilderness – your tent is able to light up so you can find it easily, heats up to keep you warm, and you can even recharge your flashlight batteries in it. Not too shabby.
What do you think? Is tent camping the one last area of solitude that we have against technology, or is it ok to have technology help out when we’re ‘braving’ the wild outdoors?
Ricky Cadden 