Google Daydream View is ready to take transform your next Android phone into an immersive virtual reality headset for a convincing price.
It's Google's new mobile-based VR headset for the Google Pixel and Pixel XL, and this one is poised to work with a lot more Android phones in the future.
Daydream View gives you a simple way to experience 360 degree games, videos and panoramic photos if you fasten your phone into its all-fabric headset body.
Perhaps the biggest difference between it and the plastic
Samsung Gear VR
and Alcatel VR Goggles is the fact that Google emphasizes an included controller.
Right out of the box, we waved around Google's tiny remote, and it acted as our essential navigation and gameplay wand. That beats using Samsung's on-headset buttons.
The fabric-coated headset design is also more comfortable than its competitors, though outside light can peek in and the phone's performance can take a hit when overheating. This is no
Oculus Rift
,
HTC Vive
or
PlayStation VR
.
Instead, this is Google's inexpensive roadmap to virtual reality on Android and a
Chromecast
-like bid to beat everyone else on price and get consumers hooked on its VR foruma. Let's get immersed to see if it's enough to get you hooked, too.
Price and release date
$79 in the US
£69 in the UK
$119 in Australia
It's $20 (£10, AU$40) cheaper than Gear VR
Google Daydream View is ridiculously inexpensive for a virtual reality headset, at least one you actually want to buy in 2016.
The official release date is today, November 10, and it's $20 (£10, AU$40) cheaper than you'll pay for a new Samsung Gear VR.
In the US, it costs $79 and is available right now via the Google Store, Best Buy and Verizon. Verizon is the sole US carrier with the Google Pixel and Pixel XL on contract.
The Google Daydream View UK price is £69, and you can find it at the Google Store, EE and Carphone Warehouse.
Looking for the headset in Australia? It's AU$119 at two retailers right now, either the Google Store or JB Hi-F. Telstra starts selling it on November 22.
Design and comfort
Fabric design is comfortable and stylish looking
Eyeglasses fit, but leaves you with red face lines
Light can leak in from the sides, so turn out the lights
Daydream View is the same size and shape as an average mobile VR headset, but it appears to be covered in our sofa. Seriously.
Its distinct fabric layer gives new meaning to Google's "Material Design" and, like the rather peculiar glass-and-metal Pixel and Pixel XL, it stands out.
Going with the "natural" fabric design are three different color choices, Slate, Snow and Crimson, just in case you want to match your favorite outfit.
This likeable, lightweight material feels comfortable to wear in short bursts and the single elastic band in back holds the headset to your noggin.
It's surprisingly steady without a top strap, which means it won't mess up your hair, mohawks included. Its eye socket-hugging facepad, however, may leave red lines on your forehead after extended use.
Daydream View has a hand-washable facepad, just in case your first question is to ask "What if I get the it dirty?" To answer your second question, yes, it works with eyeglasses on the people we tested it on.
With out without glasses, however, Google Daydream View was never a perfect fit for us. Light can seep in from the sides, illuminating normally invisible specks of dust on the phone screen.
Even though your head is cocooned in this VR mask, it's best to use this one with the light outs. It matters here.
Display
Sandwiching either a Google Pixel or Google Pixel phone between the headset's front flap and lenses is incredibly simple and secure.
However, there's a big difference between the two smartphones, as the Google Pixel is limited to a 1080p Full HD display.
The 5-inch Google Pixel screen looks fine general use, but up close – two inches from your face – will really bring out all of the pixels.
The 5.5-inch Google Pixel XL is going to look better, but it presents a noticeable screen door effect; just one that's slightly less exaggerated.
Mobile VR really makes the case for 4K phone displays, with a higher resolution that'll be able to meet the needs of pixel-dense virtual reality, hopefully in 2017.
With either phone, our expensive smartphone felt secure every time we fastened the top latch, even if the Google XL looks exposed and vulnerable. Both phones fit just fine.
Remote control
Comes with a tiny remote control
Motion detection adds to gameplay
Slides into the headset for easy carrying
Google Daydream VR comes with a small remote control, and it makes the 360 degree games all the more immersive from the get-go.
Connected via Bluetooth without any settings menu fiddling required, this remote has two buttons, a volume rocker and a clickable top trackpad.
It's also motion controlled, so everything from adventure games to racing games have you steer characters and go karts with by tilting the remote.
Casting spells in the Harry Potter-like 'Fantastic Beasts' felt natural, even if the experience itself is rather boring. Your magical wand makes it worth trying out.
You can always invest in a third-party controller for a headset like the Samsung Gear VR, but so many people don't do it right away – or at all. Google got this right.
Games
Desperately needs more immersive games
Only launched with 12 games, more to come
Puzzle games are the ones worth buying
Google Daydream View has launched with just 12 games, and only a few of them are worth downloading, nevermind paying for.
This new VR platform, with its own Google Play Store section, excels at puzzle and mini games, but needs more full-fledged and immersive 3D titles.
'Mekorama' and 'Danger Goat,' for example, are two creative puzzle games in which you navigate a character through spinnable 3D worlds. They're wonderful.
'Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes' is also inventive with ingenious local multiplayer. The headset wearer sits in front of a virtual bomb. Everyone else in the room visits a website for a lengthy PDF document and figures out which wires to cut and codes to input.
True 3D games like 'Twilight Pioneers' and 'VR Karts Sprint' feel unfinished, buggy and lackluster, while the J.K. Rowling's 'Fantastic Beasts' is short and should have been more engaging. It doesn't take advantage of its VR's 360 powers quite enough.
Hunters Gate from developer Climax Studios is the one 3D game that makes good use of the Snapdragon 821 graphics. You're going to enjoy this one for its classic arcade shooter gameplay, hours of upgrade and co-op multiplayer.
Apps and interface
Apps and games are easy to download
360-degree videos and photos have 'wow' factor
Google Street View maps are surreal in VR
Although games are a big draw for Google Daydream View buyers, there are a number of fun apps that you should spend just as much time with.
YouTube VR lets you experience 3D videos as well as watch normal YouTube content. Google Photos lets you check out your own video and photo library.
We were amazed to click on the Photos app, expecting to see a default gallery, but to then see one of our old panoramic photos show up in our headset without warning. "Wait... I recognize this photo!"
Even more surreal is seeing your home and the world's most famous locations in Google Street View. Clicking your way down your hometown street in VR in daylight, while you're just inside during the nighttime is pretty mindblowing.
Samsung Gear VR really impressed us with features like 360 degree photos and videos, and the Google Day platform does much the same, even copying the easy-to-understand Oculus VR app's tile menu interface.
Specs and performance
Snapdragon 821 chip can handle 3D graphics
Battery life and overheating an ongoing issue
Slowdown whenever the phone gets too hot
Google Daydream View is the newest VR headset and it's powered by two of the latest Android smartphones, the Google Pixel and Pixel XL.
These phones are powerful, with Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processors and an embedded Adreno 530 graphics chip. That means you can expect even more 3D-set 360 degree games as time goes on.
Right now, the graphics on some games look superb – really it depends on the time, effort and experience of developers making those games.
However, we did notice that performance takes a hit whenever the phone heats up after about 20 minutes of non-stop gameplay. You'll also see a big drop in battery life with any extended VR use.
All of this means you're either going to have to play in short bursts or tether a battery pack to your VR headset-encapsulated phone.
As more developers fine-tune their games to fully take advantage of the Snapdragon 821 processor, we hope that game performance increases and phones temperature decreases.
Verdict
Google Daydream View is priced for everyday consumers, but still best suited for early adopters, at least for the next several months.
With more content and phone compatibility to come, it's going to become the must-have VR headset for Android owners outside of the Samsung ecosystem.
Of course, if you own a Pixel or Pixel XL phone right now and want to wade in the early VR games barely in double digits, Google has made its headset cheap enough to buy without much debate. It's a worthy purchase when you're ready, but not something you desperately need to run out and buy today.
Who's it for?
Google Daydream View is meant for someone who wants to invest in a mobile VR headset, but doesn't want to break the bank. Unlike the Gear VR, it'll let you use non-Samsung phones in the future.
That said, don't expect the same full VR experience until Google is able to fill its dedicated Daydream app store section with more content. That'll come, but this is why early adopters may be best for this headset for the time being.
Should I buy it?
Eventually, Google Daydream may be the best Android-based VR headset you can buy. If you're keen on being the first to own the latest tech on your block, this is a sound investment. It's only going to get better. It's cheap enough to buy and recommend without hesitation.
Competition
Samsung Gear VR
You can't go wrong with the Samsung Gear VR, unless of course you're plugging an exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7 into the headset.
Its latest all-black model works with Samsung's micro-USB phones like the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge as well as future USB-C phones. That likely means the Samsung Galaxy S8.
Best of all, Samsung has partnered with Facebook to bring the Oculus VR store to the headset. It's filled with more games than you'll find on the Google Daydream View, which is way more meaningful than Google's comfy fabric headset exterior. The downside? You're locked into owning a Samsung phone.
from TechRadar: Technology reviews http://www.techradar.com/reviews/google-daydream-view-review