Google AR & VR

Last month, Google stopped selling Daydream View as modern Android phones — including the Pixel 4 — lack support. The company’s mobile virtual reality offerings are being further diminished today as Google Cardboard gets open sourced.

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One of the most exciting and useful features to come to Google Maps in recent memory has been AR directions, but it’s only been available on Pixel devices. Today, Google is announcing that AR directions are rolling out to more Maps users on Android and iOS.

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ARCore is Google’s platform for mobile augmented reality. It was announced in 2017, with Google later deprecating Tango for the current solution that does not require specialized sensors, cameras, or other hardware. Google today renamed the ARCore app on Android to “Google Play Services for AR.”

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Google last year updated the previously Tango-only Measure app to work with ARCore, the company’s platform for mobile augmented reality. The tool leverages AR to record distances, with version 2.2 rolling out a Material Theme revamp of the UI and smarter tools.

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Since I/O 2019, Google has launched a slew of augmented reality features from new Lens capabilities to 3D animals in Search. A previously announced Lens integration with the de Young museum in San Francisco is now also live.

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At I/O 2019, Google announced a slew of AR features, including Dining and Translation filters for Google Lens. The ability to preview animals via augmented reality in Google Search is one of the more whimsical additions and it’s now live.

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Last November, a minor spec bump to the enterprise-only variant of Google Glass received FCC certification, while benchmarks and images later leaked out. Glass Enterprise Edition 2 is now official, alongside the team graduating from X and moving into Google AR/VR.

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Earlier this month, Google provided the first demo of AR navigation in Maps for Android and announced that Local Guides will be the first users to gain access. Google this week is now reaching out to Local Guides on both Android and iOS.

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ARCore is Google’s platform for mobile augmented reality which does not require specialized hardware. As of December, it’s available on 250 million devices and powers features like Playmoji on the Pixel 3. The latest developer release today introduces a new Augmented Faces API and an ARCore Elements app for learning about basic principles.

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A report yesterday revealed that the upcoming Google Maps AR navigation mode is first being tested with Local Guides. Google is now detailing the “global localization” technique behind the feature and how it leverages a Visual Positioning Service, Street View, and machine learning.

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While real-time Google Lens was the big augmented reality announcement at I/O 2018, another exciting in-development feature was teased. Google Maps is working to leverage the camera to overlay walking directions, business listings, and other helpful guides. A first look today details the interface and that’s it coming first to beta testers.

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Just before I/O 2018, Google and Lenovo launched the first standalone Daydream headset with the Mirage Solo VR. We noted in our review that this impressive hardware is limited by the app ecosystem, but upcoming support for multiple controllers in Daydream might allow for more applications.

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Beginning with Cardboard, Google has been keen on making virtual experiences, tours, and field trips available to a wide audience. Optimal for budget-conscious schools, Google last year launched Expeditions AR to allow for phone-based exploration. The app is exiting its pilot program and is now available for all Android and iOS users.

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Announced as a “secret project” last year, Google today unveiled a high-resolution OLED display that more than triples the pixels per inch (PPI) count of current consumer headsets from HTC and Oculus. Created in partnership with LG, this screen has a 1443 PPI, wide field-of-view, and is optimized for mobile augmented and virtual reality.

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After releasing the first standalone Daydream headset earlier this month, Google is now reportedly working on creating an augmented reality headset. Initial hardware specs surfaced today, but the software portion of this rumored device is still completely unknown.

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One of the more impressive developer announcements at I/O 2017 was related to standalone virtual reality. With Seurat, mobile VR headsets can handle high-fidelity graphics typically associated with full desktop rigs. Ahead of this year’s I/O, Google is open sourcing the technology.

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Google Doodles are remarkably emblematic of the company’s whimsical nature and serve as an important, perpetual marker of an event or person. Today’s animation does both, celebrating the 1913 release of director George Méliès’ masterpiece The Conquest of the Pole. Google appropriately marked the occasion with its first-ever VR-enabled and 360° video Doodle.

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Virtual reality can allow for very immersive experiences, with Google actively investing in capturing moments with the point and shoot-like VR180 and professional Jump camera rigs. The company’s VR division is now experimenting with light fields to capture the world with much more realism.

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At the Society for Information Display’s 2017 conference, Google AR/VR head Clay Bavor announced a “secret project” to make very high-resolution displays for virtual reality. It now appears that Google is going to announce this OLED screen in May, with the initial specs being quite promising.

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