Skip to main content

Honda's Dream Drive VR experience may be the future of in-car entertainment

Honda DreamDrive Virtual Reality Demo
From the automaker that believes in the “Power of Dreams,” a partnership has been formed with the studio that puts a trademark on the concept. At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), currently being held in Las Vegas, Honda has announced a collaboration with DreamWorks Animation to demo augmented and virtual reality from the passenger’s seat.

CES attendees will be able to test Honda Dream Drive in-car VR simulator that incorporates DreamWorks animation. As is shown in the accompanying video, Trolls movie characters will ride along with you as part of a studio tour — whether you find that terrifying or not is a different question.

Recommended Videos

The project will mate live telematics data with in-vehicle entertainment, education, and information while the car is in motion. To be clear, the practical use of this technology at present would be for passengers in Honda cars. However, once autonomous technology assumes driving responsibility, even the designated driver could participate.

“Entertainment in the car is rapidly changing as consumers rely more and more on personal devices and Honda sees new opportunities to create unique experiences for our customers,” said John Moon, developer relations lead at Honda Developer Studio. “The collaboration with DreamWorks enables Honda to enhance the in-vehicle experience through new ways of delivering information and entertainment.”

“We see the cabin of an automobile as an untapped platform for delivering entertaining and educational experiences to consumers,” said DreamWorks Animation’s Chief Animation Technology Officer Jeff Wike. “Working with Honda has enabled us to bring our collective talent together to explore and identify opportunities in adapting and creating new forms of consumer engagement.”

This type of virtual or augmented reality content could preview the future of mobile entertainment, where all passengers engage in a connected, interactive experience as their car zips toward its destination.

Miles Branman
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Miles Branman doesn't need sustenance; he needs cars. While the gearhead gene wasn't strong in his own family, Miles…
Kia EV3: everything we know so far
White Kia EV3

Kia is on a roll. Hot on the heels of the success of the Kia EV6 and EV9, the company is now expanding its lineup even further, with the new EV3.

The EV3 was announced some time ago, but it's now rolling out in Europe with a solid range and a relatively low price tag. That low price tag, however, thankfully doesn't mean that the EV3 is a low-end vehicle -- on the contrary, it still offers everything you know and love about modern Kia vehicles.

Read more
I reviewed an electric car like it was a phone, and I came to a shocking conclusion
The front of the Cupra Born VZ.

The Cupra Born VZ is not a smartphone — it’s an electric car. Yet, during my time driving it over the last five days, it has reminded me more than once about the device I spend most of my time using and reviewing.

This is not a put-down, nor is it a comment on electric versus combustion-engine vehicles, but more about how I, someone who doesn’t professionally review cars, can still easily recognize what’s good and bad about it. What’s more, the categories I usually break phone reviews down into, and the language I regularly use to talk about them, also neatly applies to the Born VZ.

Read more
Hyundai teases Ioniq 9 electric SUV’s interior ahead of expected launch
hyundai ioniq 9 teaser launch 63892 image1hyundaimotorpresentsfirstlookationiq9embarkingonaneweraofspaciousevdesign

The Ioniq 9, the much anticipated three-row, electric SUV from Hyundai, will be officially unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show next week.

Selected by Newsweek as one of America’s most anticipated new vehicles of 2025, the Ioniq 9 recently had its name changed from the Ioniq 7, which would have numerically followed the popular Ioniq 6, to signal the SUV as Hyundai’s new flagship EV model.

Read more