Philadelphia pushes Comcast Center HD Video Wall as tourist attraction

There are a few must-do things when you wind up in the City of Brotherly Love: see the Liberty Bell, check out Independence Hall, scarf down an authentic cheesesteak and... peek the HD Video Wall at the Comcast Center? Shortly after wowing locals and making customers suddenly aware of where their money was going, the official visitor site for the Great Philadelphia area is now pushing the wall as a can't-miss tourist attraction. Comical though that may be, we can't say that it's really that absurd -- after all, who wouldn't want to see 2,000 square-feet of beautiful LED action when waltzing through a city on vacation? On that note, have any of you actually stopped and checked it out?

[Via Gadling]

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 21st 2008 5:43PM]

so this is why my cable bill is so outrageously expensive

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 21st 2008 5:58PM]

I haven't been yet, but I have a few friends who work there. What's most impressive is supposedly the ultra-HD video content they commissioned for it. It changes based on the time of day, so there are special sequences for rush hour, lunch time, etc. It's all custom content, design to blend and interact with the architecture of the lobby. Life-size people dance on top of the elevator banks, for example. The screen is 10 megapixel, 5 times greater than normal HD. The content is all full-res, so they had to use a special multi-camera rig to film everything for it. It's actually higher-res than digital IMAX!

[CubeGuy Posted Aug 21st 2008 6:04PM]

And now is when I stop paying for Comcast...

That said, I'd probably stop in if I were ever in the neighborhood.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 21st 2008 10:14PM]

Oh yes, I've seen it. Saw it randomly on one of the first days the video wall was live. When I walked in there was a video of a woman hovering right above the info desk. I actually thought it was a hologram info lady.
Gallery of pics here: http://www.zatznotfunny.com/2008-06/new-comcast-hq-an-imax-theater-in-the-lobby/

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2008 6:15AM]

Doesn't exactly have the same gravitas as the Mapparium at Christian Science Center does it?

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2008 9:56AM]

Thank god my new house has FiOS. I don't have to worry about paying for this waste of money. On second thought, since Comcast is known for almost constant pixelation an motion artifacts, how much you wanna bet Verizon is powering this display??

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 22nd 2008 11:29AM]

I live in Philly. Honestly, its nothing special. I wouldn't call it "High Definition". It's marginally better than other oversized displays.

Thank God I have FiOS also. Comcast could of dropped everyones cable bill instead of wasting money on this.