A friend and myself are toying with the idea of creating a “virtual tour”. The test project would use tiny FM transmitters and MP-3 players.
I’ve mentioned this idea before. The idea is simple — you bike or walk around, listening to FM recordings at various locations. Buy a map for $3. Do it yourself. A tiny solar panel could power a flash MP-3 player. The whole thing could be stashed inside a pet rock, birdhouse or brick.
My buddy David Schargel of Portland Walking Tours has the right idea. But other Portland Cultural Tours like Walk Portland exist and other audiences might be addressed like Historical Markers, Eco Tours, Gay History or Radical Bike Tours. Map Mashups would feature a clickable map, or you could just listen (on your FM radio) while biking or hiking on the route.
A mechanism that allows people to contribute additional content or access it over their cell phone would be really slick.
A solar-powered player would be tiny and cheap — $75 or so. Placed on bus shelter roofs, it could provide a “virtual tour” for free.
iLounge had an FM Transmitter Shootout (above) and tested a variety of models last year.
We’ve continually caveated our reviews with a prominent warning: static is an unavoidable consequence of FM transmission, and if you have any way to run a wire or a cassette adapter between your iPod and your stereo system, do it. In many cases, it’ll be cheaper, and sound better. FM transmitters won’t work much if at all from a distance greater than 30 feet from your radio, and typically won’t sound very good at a distance greater than 10 feet away.
If you included a 10-15 second advertisement at the beginning of each 2 minute narration, it might make money. Charging $25/month for each location nets $300/year. But how would you update the thing?
Microsofts’ rumored Zune player (above) might be just the ticket. Peer-To-Peer wireless transfer could update your “virtual tour” in seconds — direct from your bike, car or bus seat.
How about a $3 million homeland security/DOT grant — with 1% for art. That might provide location-based “homeland security” info on every bus shelter. Updated monthly. Or — via store-and-forward Zune device — every time a bus passes by.
