Technology
"I'm sure you've heard of ;) xxx
T
echnology has a place in every part of our
I started a discussion on Twitter about this: is VR
lives but we often forget the role it plays in our
pornography the future, or is it a little weird? My
love lives. Not too long ago, the conventional
favourite response came from a friend of mine (who
way of meeting people would be whilst out with friends
inspired the name of this article): “I’m sure you’ve heard
and being introduced through someone. Not anymore.
of Rule 34… Right?” The idea that if something exists,
With the rise of dating apps such as Tinder, Grindr, and
there will be pornography made about it... Because we’re
Happn, you're no longer restricted to those within the
all different and we like different things.
outer reaches of your friend circles: the world is your ocean and it's full of fish!
And because ‘weird’ tends to become popular through general curiosity, soon it’ll become the norm. At least
The way people explore their sexuality has also changed,
after a lot of publicity, some criticism, and maybe even
you can now use virtual reality to bring your wildest
people ‘just trying it for a laugh’. Fifty Shades of Grey
fantasies to life. And no, it’s not weird, it’s unlimited
experienced exactly this: because anything to do with
potential! We even saw some previews at last year’s
sexuality automatically becomes controversial and
Sundance Film Festival.
risqué. The start-ups in the business know this and
44
Technology
aren’t scared to push boundaries.
wrong. When done correctly
The world of virtual reality is
Various companies hire out adult
however, the final product can be
growing. It’s the closest most
film actresses for their VR sWhoots
incredibly life-like.
people can get to a lucid dream. In the meantime however, we’ll just
- and since VR can be made live, sometimes the shoots are tailored
But what about the feel of VR? The
have to keep dreaming of a
to individuals, using various
Oculus Touch and HTC Vive both
perfect virtual future.
add-on gadgets for men and
use controllers which allow users to
women alike, which help bring the
go beyond the standard audio-visual
experience to life.
experience of VR, and can even
Written by Mila Georgieva
bring your hands into the virtual One company made up of
world. Unfortunately there is no
University students in America
feedback, you can’t touch or hold
discussed their project online, where
anything in VR, everything feels the
their first test shoot took place in
same - it feels like a controller.
a dorm room! A few crazy stories later, and their idea took off. Their
Overall we seem to be a just a few
use of 360 degree cameras for the
years away from any truly human
shoots provided a wide range of
interaction through VR. This is
angles, making for a very immersive
something companies are paying
experience whilst wearing a virtual
millions for, and one way the
reality headset. But the behind-the-
pornography industry is
scenes work is not so glamorous.
growing, giving it a new
There’s usually either a 360 camera,
taste of potential which is
or a group of regular cameras in
quickly becoming more widespread. Which also brings about even more
“The idea that if something exists, there will be pornography made about it...”
weird and wonderful gadgets such as “Fundawear” and “Kissenger”. The former of which is a project by Durex: foreplay underwear. Controlled by a mobile app, this set of fancy pants provides the sensation of touch via sensors and receptors in the fabric. Kissenger
a circle, to enable to multi-angle views. (Apparently Go-Pros are great for this - what can’t we use Go-Pros for?) Angles are important too, distortion or pixelation can occur due to a bad angle - resulting in someone appearing cut in half if they lean too far one way, like a panoramic photo gone completely
by Lovotics on the other hand (which has absolutely nothing to do with American politics) is a kissing middle-man for long-distance couples: it replicates the kiss from one person to the other via the mini robot head… which is shaped like a pig (again, no political connotations).
45