Virgin America Announces Android Powered Red In-Flight Partnership With Panasonic

Long flights on airlines can get boring, but in the last few years, flights of all distances have become more bearable thanks to in-flight WiFi and other niceties in the air. Virgin America has a cool in-flight entertainment system called Red that it has offered since 2007. Along the way, the system has been updated with new features and capability. While some airlines only offer their high-end in-flight infotainment systems on a few aircraft, the Virgin Red system is available fleet-wide.

Virgin America has now announced a new partnership with Panasonic that is kicking off in beta form. The Red, Panasonic beta will start on three aircraft and includes a higher resolution screen with capacitive touch. The new Red platform is based on Android.

Virgin says that by using Android it will be able to make faster improvements in the short-term to the in-flight entertainment system. The capacitive screens support pinch and swipe functionality. More storage capacity means three times more content with full seasons of popular shows.

New interactive games are available with classics like Asteroids and Pac-Man. Maps have been enhanced and are more interactive. The Red beta systems also offer a first with surround-sound in the sky for select content. Some of the content isn't free with movies costing around $8 each and some TV shows selling for $5 per episode.

SOURCE: Virgin America