Sony is ready to deliver its Vision-S concept car and people are all hyped up. The Vision-S is a very nice concept car. It is sleek and has a curvy four-door fastback. It is packed in a 536-hp electric drive and an overloaded suite of Sony tech running bumper to bumper.
When announced, it was thought of as a flashy tech showcase, a voluptuous show model meant to draw attention to the real meat Sony was selling. However, by the end of 2020, Sony was testing a fully developed prototype on the roads of Europe.
Testing continued throughout 2021, and now that CES 2022 has rolled around, Sony demonstrates that it’s more committed to mobility than ever, revealing the Vision-S 02 as a seven-seat complement to the original Vision-S. Also, Sony revealed plans of launching Sony Mobility Inc. in spring 2022 (Northern Hemisphere) to accelerate its mobility proposal development. The new operating company will explore the possibility of entering the EV market.
The Vision-S 02 prototype shows how Sony’s connected vehicle platform can easily translate to a different vehicle type optimized for a different breed of customer. The concept relies on the same EV/Cloud platform and entertainment hardware as the original Vision-S 01 sedan, incorporating a full 360-degree suite of sensors, including LiDAR and high-sensitivity, high-resolution CMOS image sensors. Sony is performing verification testing on this hardware in Europe toward the release of Level 2+ advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) on public roads.
The car has space for a fast-growing outdoor gear collection or faster-growing family, with the two rows of rear seats folding flat for plenty of cargo room. Sony also mentions a four-seater for those who value rear legroom over the room for extra passengers.
Amazing entertainment technology has also been incorporated into the car. The full-width digital dashboard and seat back-mounted screens serve as displays for the “Bravia Core for Vision-S” digital video service, offering passengers the ability to play a single movie or video across the car or play different content on individual screens. Occupants can even play video games, pull in gaming content from the cloud, or, alternatively, a remote connection to a home PlayStation console.
Immersive 3D audio comes through via seat speakers, and music can be played through “360 Reality Audio” streaming. Gesture and voice control of multiple interior systems and features are also provided.
5G connectivity is critical to many of the safety and multimedia features of the Vision-S platform, and last month Sony ran its 5G system through an intercontinental test. Using low-latency video and control transmissions, a Tokyo-based control team was able to operate the prototype Vision-S 01 on a German test course.
On Tuesday night, Sony introduced the Vision-S 02 and its mobility plans at its CES press conference. The SUV concept will appear alongside an original Vision-S 01 prototype at its CES exhibit when the show officially opens on Wednesday.
