Gamers Drool Over, Moms Applaud Arrival Of Gamepodtm
Furniture World Magazine
on
6/15/2004
Furniture grabbed center stage at the Consumer Electronics Show with the
introduction of Gamepod by Loftgoods. Gamepod integrates high quality audio and tactile sound and embeds the technology in a high-style, comfortable, upholstered chair that turns heads with its good looks, as well as for the way it totally changes the video game and movie-watching experience.
“There is a huge gap in the interactive furniture category,” said Paul Wong, CEO of Loftgoods, manufacturer of the Gamepod. “The product at the low end is chiefly plastic and uncomfortable, and home theater seating retails for well over $1,000, and is so largely scaled that few homes can accommodate it. Gamepod is the first gaming furniture that is designed to deliver true
comfort, high style and unbelievable technology.”
Driving the Gamepod is a 300-watt amplifier, two coaxial speakers and a tactile transducer embedded in the frame. Built by Clark Synthesis, supplier to the leading theme parks and armed forces flight simulators, Gamepod’s transducer delivers a tactile experience unmatched by other
products. “[Clark’s] tagline is ‘full contact audio’,” said Wong. “It fits.”
Loftgoods has given Gamepod plug-and-play simplicity. The chair works with all major gaming and home theater systems, Macs, PCs, Gameboys, DVDs and VCRs. Users can control audio volume and balance the tactile and audio sound — more sound, less shake, and vice versa.
The chairs are easily daisy chained so homes with multiple players can keep everyone happy. Video gaming has grown at staggering levels and the industry estimates that today there are 60,000,000 avid gamers in the country. Now they have a place to sit.
LoftgoodsTM, headquartered in High Point, NC, specializes in innovative furnishing solutions. Along with Gamepod, Loftgoods manufactures leather Club Chairs and Go AnywhereTM upholstery that use Loftgoods’ next generation ready-to-assemble technology. Consumers now can take high-quality, large-scale upholstered furniture where it has never gone before.