Starting from today and lasting a month passengers riding a singe train on Tokyo’s Yamanote line will be able to access a special information service called Train Net through smartphones via an on-board Wi-Fi network. JR (Japan Rail) have partnered with Mitsubishi to roll out the service as a trial on one of Tokyo’s busiest lines.
The new service was on display at today’s Ceatec Exhibition and is currently only installed on one train on the Yamanote line until November 2nd. This is the first time Tokyo’s trains will offer on-board Wi-Fi all be it for this one specific purpose and users can’t browse other sites through the network. Passengers are able to log on to the on-board Wi-Fi network and access a wide variety of entertainment and train information. One interesting function lets users know which carriages are the quietest and also the coolest, giving real time temperature read outs, particularly useful given the amount of people who ride the Yamanote line.
Going beyond mere functional train information the service also offers location based services, recommending different shops and restaurants in the vicinity of the stations the user is approaching and provides coupons and deals exclusive to those who use the service. There are also entertainment options that allows users to download web magazines and manga comics to browse between stations.
The system can be used with devices with browsers and users, once connected to the “trainnet” wifi, simply open the browser and the site opens automatically. The information compliments the screens currently on the trains which display simple information to commuters. One annoyance of the screen being that it scrolls through the information, meaning passengers needing to know which station is next have to wait until it appears on the screen, whereas the service allows access to the information right away.
The layout of the site is also nicely done, with the line information at the top of the screen most of the time and easy enough to navigate through all the other options. It is interesting that JR and Mistubishi have opted for a browser-based portal site that users have to visit through the Wi-Fi network as well as an app with similar functionality. People with devices that have wi-fi but no 3g can access information quickly, and the amount of content for everyone can be broader to include nice quality videos and music. The app is available for both Android and iPhone.
For all those train spotters wanting to check out the service on the train themselves, you can visit the site and see an update in real time where the train is and hop on at the nearest stop.
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