Perth father watches his son’s birth 4000km away thanks to virtual reality

THE wonders of technology. A fly-in fly-out working father was able to experience the birth of his son 4000km away thanks to virtual reality technology.

The wonders of technology.

SAMSUNG this morning announced that it has streamed the first ever child birth in virtual reality.

While it’s easy to just dismiss virtual reality for its current uses as a tool for entertainment, the opportunities that virtual reality provide are endless.

In this case, Jason Larke, a fly-in fly-out worker from Western Australia was able to watch his child’s birth over 4000kms away while working in remote Queensland.

This was thanks to a Samsung supplied Gear VR headset, who also uploaded a video today showing Jason and his wife Alison’s full story.

Speaking about her experience, Alison said: “After we found out I was five weeks pregnant with our third child, we watched our baby grow, found out he was a boy and dreamt about what the future may hold. Then at 30 weeks pregnant, Jace’s contract roster was confirmed and it was more than likely he would miss the birth our baby, pending a miracle. But that’s exactly what we got.

News_Image_File: Samsung’s newest Gear VR is expected to be released in late April.

“We were given the opportunity to be involved in the Samsung project. Jace was able to see our son born and experience the birth as if he was in the room with me even though he was working away on the other side of the country. For me it was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders knowing he would not be missing out on such a precious moment in our lives and we would virtually be experiencing the birth together. It has been an absolutely amazing, once in a lifetime experience that has changed our lives forever.”

Virtual reality is set to explode in 2015, with multiple companies including Samsung to release new headsets into the mainstream market.