OCTOBER 18, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tokyo, Japan (October 18, 2023)— tonari, the Tokyo-based startup that builds floor-to-ceiling, always-on video portals that bridge remote spaces, announces tonari lite — a next-generation product designed to bring its revolutionary teleportation-like experience to a wider range of global organizations. Designed to be more accessible, tonari lite offers improved performance, a slimmer design, simplified installation, and more versatile pricing options for growing startups, SMBs and international entities. tonari lite is available for order today, alongside its larger counterpart “tonari pro.”
In recent years, the need for flexible working environments has surged, prompting businesses to invest in innovative technological solutions. As growing startups and enterprises strive to attract top-tier talent and expand into new markets, tonari is built for teams to collaborate in real time, maintaining the essence of face-to-face interactions. Connecting through tonari fosters an environment of trust, enables faster and more creative communication, and reduces the spatial divide inherent as companies expand across offices.
Retaining all of the core features of its predecessor, tonari lite offers an always-on, life-sized, floor-to-ceiling display featuring extremely smooth and low-latency video for genuine eye-to-eye communication. The reimagined form factor and compact design ensure its suitability for various spaces, from smaller offices to medical facilities to educational institutions. Furthermore, its lighter build, along with reduced shipping costs and installation time, allows for global delivery across North America, Europe, Oceania, and Asia.
tonari is also introducing simplified pricing: tonari lite can be either purchased up-front, or rented through a monthly subscription service comparable to the cost of one international business trip per month. The subscription is inclusive of all hardware, software, maintenance, and services — with complimentary delivery for longer subscription periods — allowing for lower implementation costs and flexible usage among growing teams.
New features with tonari lite include support for hybrid calls with popular video platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Google Meet, and multiple input options for screen sharing, including both HDMI and wireless connectivity, to aid with collaborative tasks and media presentations. These features will also be available for tonari pro, and as upgrade options for existing clients.
tonari lite is well suited for smaller settings, intimate meetings, and teammates working side-by-side. Meanwhile, the larger tonari pro is designed for larger meetings, open collision areas, and event spaces. For more product information, including dimensions and technical specifications, visit tonari’s official website.
tonari offers a variety of benefits to organizations, including improved communications, lower costs, and easier remote expansion. In daily use, it enables teams to build trust and strengthen relationships, have quick check-ins without scheduling, and collaborate through complex tasks with more rapid, nuanced and creative communication — all without the fatigue of video calls. As organizations expand, it also improves hiring and business development in new regions, and makes it possible to share more resources across locations. tonari works well for creative agencies and game studios, international startups and ventures, consulting firms and product development companies, and enterprises connecting HQs and branch offices.
In the past three years, tonari pro has been used by a wide range of clients, including traditional Japanese companies such as JR East and Sompo, gaming and software companies like PlatinumGames and freee, and educational institutions such as the Tokyo University of Science. However, until now, access to tonari has been limited to larger organizations, as each unit was bespoke and handmade, and built in close collaboration with the client. tonari lite represents a complete redesign that makes tonari’s technology more scalable and accessible — in terms of both hardware production and ease of installation — for more diverse teams and institutions around the world.
The new tonari lite is available for immediate delivery in Japan, and with additional lead time in other parts of the world. Installation requires stable high-speed internet, and a suitable environment with appropriate lighting, acoustics, and furnishings. More information can be found on tonari’s website.
Mr. Akihiko Wilhelm Fujii Director and Executive Managing Officer Real Tech Holdings Inc.
“We decided to introduce tonari to connect Japan and overseas, just in time for the expansion of our Singapore team in November 2022. This was the first time for us to cross into another country, so we were a bit nervous, but with tonari we’ve been impressed with how smooth the experience has been. I use tonari every day, and when I pass by I also look to see who is around the Singapore side, and sometimes check-in or say hello. tonari not only improves work efficiency, but is also very useful in building trusting relationships and sharing the same energy and culture. In the future, we would like to also introduce tonari lite in Malaysia and other countries, to connect startup ecosystems around the world.”
Mr. Shinji Ineda Executive Officer Frontier Consulting Inc.
"To solve some of the challenges faced in modern society and realize a more ‘ideal lifestyle’ we excitedly became involved with tonari during its early development. In January 2020, we set up the first pilot program to try tonari in the workplace, installing it in our Tokyo headquarters and Osaka branch. Since May of this year, our satellite office and co-working space ‘WELAGO’ in Izu Oshima (a remote island) has also been connected via tonari with our Tokyo headquarters. Now Tokyo and Izu Oshima experience diverse communication through tonari, including interaction between urban and rural areas and among people inside and outside the company, and we feel new possibilities. With the release of tonari lite, we look forward to seeing tonari grow and be used in more areas."
Taj Campbell Co-founder and CEO tonari, Inc.
"We’ve taken what we learned during the past few years of delivering our first-generation product, and focused toward building a more refined product and experience, compressing everything into a smaller and higher-performance package with new features. Feedback from clients has been great, but the previous format limited it to ****large organizations that met strict requirements. We believe tonari lite expands the possibilities of using this technology to more companies."