Google’s AR to gain dual-camera support to improve depth of 3D animals, more

Kyle Bradshaw | Mar 1 2021 - 3:58 pm PT

Google’s AR services on Android are set to gain an upgrade, adding support for multiple cameras, which should give your favorite AR apps, like 3D animals, a better sense of depth.

Google Play Services for AR, previously known as ARCore, is responsible for running numerous augmented reality experiences on Android, including the Pixel-exclusive AR Playground, Google Search’s 3D animals craze, and other models like one for the recent Perseverance Mars landing.

Recently, as spotted by Android Police, Play Services for AR received an update, and in a rare treat, the Play Store’s “What’s New” section for the app has been filled out. Along with support for more devices, the update is labeled to bring dual-camera support for better depth perception.

Dual camera stereo depth on supported devices

Just as humans combine the signal from two eyes to better understand how far away certain objects are, Play Services for AR will use two of your phone’s cameras to know how best to place objects into the scene. This should help give future play sessions with Google’s 3D animals a more realistic look and feel.

As for the “supported devices” tidbit, AP discovered that a Google Play Services for AR support page has now been updated to reflect that the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL will be the first devices to support dual-camera AR. According to the same page, dual-camera depth should begin arriving for Pixel 4 owners “in the coming weeks.”

From there, it should only be a matter of time before Google adds the same support to other Pixels and Android phones with multiple cameras, such as the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G. Likely, Google and other OEMs will need to calibrate and optimize the depth perception based on how far apart the phone’s two cameras are.