Coldplay is coming to India in January 2025 for their Coldplay: Music of the Spheres World Tour. For fans, this will be a golden opportunity to experience Coldplay live in India. But have you ever wondered what makes Coldplay truly special, aside from Chris Martin’s singing? Well, it’s the thousands of wristbands that light up the entire stadium, in sync, forming intricate patterns and creating truly immersive, awe-inspiring moments. But how do they work? And how are these effects synchronised? Are they fixed to your seat? Here, we’ll answer all your questions about how the tech behind the wristbands work during Coldplay’s concerts.
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Coldplay Concert LED Wristbands Explained: How They Work
Firstly, these wristbands have become so popular that they’re no longer exclusive to Coldplay concerts—we’ve seen them in K-pop concerts and across the world. However, the technology behind the bands is actually quite simple. There’s no AI or advanced machine learning involved; instead, they function using either RFID technology or infrared (IR) technology (the more advanced option).
RFID wristbands simply receive radio signals via a central transmitter and are programmed to behave in certain ways based on various zones, as this WSJ video feature explains. More often that not, the same signal is transmitted to the entire wristband network. In contrast, infrared-based wristbands allow event organisers to send data signals to specific sections of the stadium, enabling intricate effects like heart shapes, pulsing lights, and more (you may have seen these heart shapes at Coldplay concerts).
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IR Wristbands at Coldplay Concerts: How They Work
Think of it like how your TV remote works. Your remote sends an IR (infrared) signal to your TV to turn it on. Similarly, at concerts, organisers use a central transmitter to project IR signals to different parts of the audience. This allows different sections of the stadium to light up, creating complex animations and other effects, which are a joy for the audience to witness.
Imagine the transmitter as a remote control and the robotic arm controlling the transmitter as your hand. Like a torch, you light up the area where you point the beam. That’s how it works—by directing the signal towards the sections of the audience wearing wristbands, lighting them up in perfect sync.
This means you don’t have to stay in a fixed seat. Even if you move to a different position, the LED wristband’s effect won’t be disrupted, as it only responds when the infrared transmitter projects a signal onto it. Unlike RFID bands, IR bands are not dependent on your position.
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