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.
YouTube is one of the best places to find content, and that includes virtual reality media. 360-degree content is all over Google’s platform, and now, those with VR headsets connected to PCs will be able to access that properly.
Back at Google I/O, the company announced partnerships with HTC and Lenovo to debut a new collection of Daydream-powered headsets that would run independently of a smartphone. It’s an excellent idea, but we never got any concrete details on when they would debut. Now, HTC has revealed more information — it’s no longer making one.
Web browsing is slowly making its way to virtual reality, and Google is pushing for developers to support the new “WebVR” platform. However, not everyone supports it just yet. Previously, that meant those websites couldn’t be viewed in a VR headset, but now, they can.
Google’s mobile VR platform Daydream has grown a lot over the past year, but the hardware hasn’t changed at all. Google’s Daydream View has been the only option, and it’s definitely not perfect. Now, it looks like Google is planning to refresh it at the upcoming October 4th event.
The possibilities with virtual reality are endless, but even since the days of Google Cardboard, Google Earth has been one of the highlights for newcomers to the VR platform. Yesterday, Google announced that its Google Earth VR app is being updated to support Street View images.
Google’s Daydream VR platform is arguably the best mobile VR option, but it only works on a small portion of the vast Android ecosystem. Devices like the Pixel, Moto Z, and ZTE Axon 7 are all supported, but there’s not much outside of that. Yesterday on Google’s earnings call, CEO (and recently appointed Alphabet board member) Sundar Pichai revealed that quite a few more compatible devices are incoming.
One of the main issues with mobile VR such as Daydream or Samsung’s Gear VR is that even the top of the line smartphones just don’t have the processing power required to smoothly render graphically intense visuals. To help with this, Google has created Seurat, a tool that takes full 3D environments and turns them into scenes that can be viewed on mobile VR, all without losing huge amounts of quality…
During a keynote focused on VR and AR at day 2 of I/O 2017, Google announced Daydream 2.0, a major update slated for later this year. Codenamed Euphrates, there is a focus on easier sharing, improved interface, and Chrome.
Just like Harman (and, more specifically, AKG) are helping Samsung to step up its audio game, Oculus is the firm’s partner of choice when it comes to VR.
Together, they are today announcing a “renewed” version of the Gear VR headset, which comes with a cool new controller…
Google’s efforts in VR have been fairly extensive, but I wouldn’t call any of them particularly impressive. Google Cardboard is widespread and simple, while Daydream VR is intuitive, comfortable, and provides one of the best VR experiences on mobile. New job listings, though, might point to Google having something else up its sleeve…
Google has today made some replacement facepads available for its Daydream View VR headset. You can pick them up right now on the Google Store for $15.
In addition to mobile and desktop software, Google also creates software for dedicated virtual reality platforms. Launched last year, Tilt Brush and Google Earth are impressive VR experiences for the HTC Vive. Nearly a year later, the former app is now available for the competing Oculus Rift.
Samsung helped usher in the premium mobile VR experience a couple of years ago with the debut of the Gear VR headset. In the time since, that headset has evolved slightly to offer better viewing angles, improved comfort, and of course, to accommodate new devices from the company. As we approach the release of the Galaxy S8, it seems like Samsung is getting ready to bring a new headset to the table, this time with a dedicated controller.
These are not the best days for HTC. The Taiwanese company has been stumbling for quite a while, both financially and in the eye of critics and consumers. One thing seems to have paid off, however: its VR efforts. That’s why, as per a CNET interview, the company is looking forward to progressively shifting its core business to that…
VR is growing fast, whether that’s on desktops and consoles, or on mobile devices. While there’s no doubt that most impressive options have come in the PC-powered section of the market, such as the HTC Vive, we’ve also seen some very capable mobile options, like Samsung’s Gear VR and Google’s Daydream View. Now, the man who led the design team on HTC’s Vive is heading to Google Daydream.
YouTube is one of the first stops for most VR users, mainly because it’s one of the few apps supported on nearly every VR platform. However, PlayStation’s first step into VR didn’t include YouTube, until now.
VR on mobile is one of the least expensive ways to get into the space since you can use the smartphone you already own. However, many mobile VR solutions aren’t all that impressive. There are two clear leaders — Google’s Daydream, and the Samsung Gear VR. If you use a recent Samsung device, your choice should be pretty obvious, and there’s no better time to buy than right now.
Last year, Google announced that many upcoming Android devices would support the Daydream VR platform. At CES, Asus announced the Daydream-ready ZenFone AR and ZTE noted that support was coming to the Axon 7 with Nougat. Today, Google announced the addition of Huawei’s Mate 9 and Mate 9 Pro, as well as the first third-party Daydream viewer.
If there’s one thing that New York City and the Christmas festivity have in common, magic is surely it. Its streets get decorated with specially-themed ornaments of all kinds, and the retail stores’ windows are tweaked accordingly, as well.
And Google, with its latest initiative, wanted to capture that magic as best as it could…
Kicking off Thanksgiving Day starts for many with the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. This year, Verizon has teamed up with Macy’s and NBC Universal to stream the parade in 360-degrees, perfect for VR viewing.
In the mid-2000s, one of the coolest pieces of software to play around with was Google Earth. That experience is now coming to high-end virtual reality headsets with Google Earth VR. For the moment, it is available for free on Steam, but only for the HTC Vive.
Daydream VR is finally here and for those who pre-ordered the Pixel early, promo codes for a free headset should be in their inboxes. Once you get a headset, the first thing you’ll want is some content to go along with it. There are plenty of apps already available with Daydream support, but now Hulu has updated its Android app with support.
Like many of you, I first heard of Google’s Daydream platform — then rumored to be called Android VR — back at Google I/O 2016. I had hope that Google would pull an actual VR headset out of a hat at its annual developer conference, but, unsurprisingly, that didn’t happen. I felt a bit let down when I learned that the company was rather going to double-down on Cardboard.
It seemed like a good idea in theory, but I was skeptical. Would smartphone-in-a-headset ever be a good enough experience for people to use VR for any longer than 10 minutes? Can phones handle captivating VR experiences? I’m still not completely sure, but having now spent a week with Daydream, I feel for now that the answer is going to be yes and no.
