Virgin America Takes Cognizance Of Growing Competition: Introduces New Inflight Entertainment System With Android

Virgin America has announced to upgrade its Red service with a beta launch of a revamped in-flight entertainment platform that will run on Android operating system, according to reports.

The latest version of Red will be built on a new Android based platform and the airline is planning to beta test on 18 aircraft by end of 2015, reports ARS Technica UK. The Red beta uses Panasonic’s Eco V2 inflight system, which pairs a 9-inch 720p capacitive touch screen which also features integrated audio jacks, USB sockets, a credit card reader and decode HD video at 720p, reports ARS Technica UK.

Virgin America's Red service was one of the most talked about offerings in the airline industry. The inflight entertainment system that was launched in 2007, featured 9-inch, 1024x600 pixel resolution touch screens, USB ports, power outlets, Ethernet sockets, and a custom Linux-based OS. In order to compete with Singapore Airlines and Emirates that got noticed for their provision for inflight entertainment system last year, Virgin America decided to go for an upgrade, according to the ARS Technica UK report.

The new system based on Android will bring in many new features that include swipe and pinch-to-zoom gesture controls for each new Panasonic HD display, reports Techno Buffalo. Passengers can also access entire seasons of TV shows and play games like Pac-Man and Asteroids. With the new system on board passengers will get three times as much content as before and the company is also including 3D audio that works with users’ personal headphones. Besides that, there is also an advanced map app that tracks the flight, reported Techno Buffalo.

With the Android support, the airline can now update the system rapidly and frequently. “For me personally the most exciting thing about this new system is not so much what it is today but what it can become in the future,” the Techno Buffalo report quoted Ken Bieler, Virgin America’s director of cabin system, product design and innovation, as saying. Bieler also told the publication, “It gives us a new platform to really innovate and draw out new capabilities and new features and bring them to all our guests on a much faster basis.”

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