Posted in: Game Hardware, Games, Video Games | Tagged: daydream, google, Google Daydream, vr

Google Is Officially Killing Off Daydream VR Support

Published Wed, 16 Oct 2019 21:40:48 -0500

Google is Officially Killing Off Daydream Support — Credit: Google

Not long after officially unveiling the Pixel 4 smartphone, Google quietly confirmed that it's winding down support for its mobile VR platform, Daydream.

The portable smartphone-based headset launched three years ago in November 2016. Meant as a competitor to VR options like Samsung's Gear VR headset, Daydream could be used with your phone to offer an accessible, low-cost virtual reality experience. Unfortunately, less than five years after its debut, Google confirmed its new Pixel 4 phones won't support the feature. Furthermore, the Daydream View headset will be removed from retail circulation.

"There hasn't been the broad consumer or developer adoption we had hoped, and we've seen decreasing usage over time of the Daydream View headset," said Google in a statement to Variety. If you do have a Daydream headset and still use it, don't worry. The app will be available for the foreseeable future.

"We saw a lot of potential in smartphone VR – being able to use the smartphone you carry with you everywhere to power an immersive on-the-go experience," read Google's statement. "But over time we noticed some clear limitations constraining smartphone VR from being a viable long-term solution. Most notably, asking people to put their phone in a headset and lose access to the apps they use throughout the day causes immense friction."

If you're one of the few people who didn't find using the Daydream caused "friction," you can use yours. It's unclear how long the app will be available. If you want to get some use in, better do it before it ends up being too late. Or you could invest in regular VR at some point and skip over the whole thing.

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