Is There Any Benefit to Watching a Movie in IMAX in Your Mercedes?

Sony and Mercedes announced a summer novelty that is sure to delight movie enthusiasts with good eyesight.

The RIDEVU entertainment service will allow watching movies in IMAX quality directly in certain Mercedes cars equipped with the latest screens.

Sony, IMAX, Mercedes, and DTS, a subsidiary of Xperi, announced that the RIDEVU entertainment service will enable viewing movies in IMAX quality directly in certain Mercedes vehicles equipped with the newest screens.

IMAX, known for its giant screens and immersive visual experience, relies on proprietary technology that combines increased resolution, an expanded image format, and top-tier sound quality. IMAX Enhanced movies available via RIDEVU will benefit from the “expanded aspect ratio” (EAR), which optimizes scenes for a wider field of view, as well as the DMR (Digital Media Remastering) process and immersive DTS:X sound. Titles like Spider-Man: No Way Home or Uncharted are among the available content, accessible in multiple languages.

The RIDEVU service is available in several countries, including the United States, Japan, and Germany, offering purchase, rental, or streaming options directly integrated into compatible vehicles. Passengers can watch movies on built-in screens or mobile devices, with the option to sync up to six screens for shared or individual experiences.

However, one might wonder if the promise of an immersive experience, characteristic of IMAX, retains its full meaning on small screens built into a car. The very essence of IMAX lies in the grandeur of its screens and the powerful acoustics of its theaters, designed to completely envelop the viewer. Reducing this technology to a few-inch screens inside a vehicle raises questions: are the EAR format or DTS:X sound enough to recreate the expected immersion?

Despite this potential limitation, this collaboration between SPE, IMAX, and DTS marks a turning point for entertainment on the move, aiming to bring the cinema experience closer to users, wherever they are.

READ ALSO: We can finally watch TV in our cars!