Maybach at Dolby, SXSW 2023 – Austin, Texas

A couple of days ago, I featured a very high-end sedan called the Maybach — it’s Mercedes-Benz’s top-end model. Dolby had one on display inside. In addition, Dolby had another Maybach outside the venue, and today we get to look inside.

The Maybach is a ridiculous car, and I think that’s partially by design. What kind of vehicle do you build when money is no object for people who have more money than they know what to do with it? While I’ve never been on a private plane, the interior of this car looks like what I’ve seen in YouTube videos for the jet set.

I sat in the back, as you can see. I like this guy’s expression, and it’s probably the same expression I had as I snapped pictures.

There’s a lot of LED mood lighting, shiny surfaces, aluminum trim, and supple leather. It’s too blingy for my taste, but Mercedes knows their customers. It also shows that the gap between the super-rich and the middle class is smaller, at least for cars. Sure, this car is enormous and, I’m sure, fast and with a plush interior, but is it that much better than a Honda Accord? I bet that Honda is more reliable, too. However, if you’re super rich, reliability probably isn’t a concern.

The staff at the Dolby SXSW experience were all friendly regardless of one’s badge status. Like me, without a ticket to SXSW, the general public was treated with the same courtesy as official attendees. That went a long way in my book. And Dolby’s promo generated goodwill with me. Plus, I’m a satisfied customer of their technology.

I’m blogging about them because it was fun and visually interesting, and I received no compensation. Their word-of-mouth efforts worked well.

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