IFA - Day 1 - Google Street View meets treadmill on the iFit Live

With winter just around the corner (leading to the question: where was summer?) going for a run outside can prove somewhat wet/cold/icy. The simple solution is to head indoors and use a treadmill. But then you lose the glory of the great outdoors. Well, not anymore...sort of.

On the vast and 3D TV-filled Panasonic stand (disturbingly lacking in tablets), was a treadmill. Noting it wasn't a 3D TV we gave it a closer inspection and were delighted to find it worked in conjunction with Google Street View.

The treadmill works with a (Panasonic) TV or a normal computer over Wifi to download information from Google Street View. This is done through an app that uses the data contained within Street View to plot out an exercise course.

The treadmill that Panasonic was demonstrating the software on could also adapt its settings depending on the elevation of the land on Google Maps. So, plot a course that includes a hill and running up it on the treadmill will prove rather difficult.

The software has been around for a while now and Panasonic was showing it at IFA to promote its new Smart TVs, which run a variety of apps and online services.

Elsewhere on the Panasonic stand we were mildly underwhelmed by a sea of 3D TVs and a confusingly large number smart TVs.

There were also two strange demo areas, in which dancers and beach volleyball players pranced around for the entertainment of the baffled masses. The purpose? To show off Panasonic's 3D TVs. Of course, the 3D effect was rather better if one stopped squinting at the 3D TVs with a pair of stupid glasses and looked at the prancing people who were right there anyway. In real life.

We'll have more from IFA over the next few days, keep checking back for updates!