Google has quietly retired the Google Play Movies and TV app for its Daydream VR platform, fueling speculation that the company plans to shift away from virtual reality in favor of augmented reality. The company confirmed the app's removal in a statement on Thursday, saying that other Google apps already available on Daydream will remain. Device owners can still watch their purchased content.
After a period of hype, the VR market seems to have gone a bit quieter. Some might take it as a sign of stagnation but others will most likely argue that it's simply maturing behind the scenes. One sign of that maturity is perhaps the adoption of VR technology and hardware in the potentially more lucrative enterprise market. And that's exactly the market that the HTC Vive Pro Eye is launching to in the US and Canada. For a hefty price, naturally.
We seem to be a screen-obsessed society these days, be it on phones or on computers. Truth be told, if we could have more screens, we would jump on them without a second thought. Unfortunately or perhaps fortunately, there are only so many screens you can afford and squeeze in a physical location. One solution would be to have an almost infinite number of virtual windows you can place anywhere in virtual space, which is exactly what Microsoft's Mt. Rogers research project is proposing you do.
Oculus and Vive may be competing head to head in the VR space but, outside of those two, not much else is happening with other companies. Google has not mentioned Daydream even once at I/O last month and OEMs that have made the first batch of Windows Mixed Reality headsets have mostly fallen silent as well. Despite that, Samsung isn't yet calling it quits and suggests multiple AR and VR products are coming this year, whether you like it or not.
With a new generation of VR headsets seemingly upon us, Logitech has decided to launch a rather interesting accessory for virtual reality: a stylus. Dubbed the VR Ink Pilot Edition, this stylus will allow users write or create either on a 2D surface or in 3D at room scale. The idea, it seems, is to give end users a degree of precision when working in VR that they otherwise may not have.
Sony's PlayStation VR system is well and away the easiest form of non-mobile virtual reality in the world at the moment. With the introduction of VR to the console world came the possibility that there'd be more than a couple splits in content - and usability. Interaction with the 3D content in a virtual reality, from your couch, in your living room - that's the true dream. Now add a pair of pants.
The New York Police Department is testing the use of virtual reality as a training tool for officers. The test started in early April and involved a couple hundred officers over the course of a single week at a facility in Brooklyn. This is the first time the NYPD has used virtual reality for training, and it joins the police department's recent adoption of drone technologies.
Back at the end of March, Valve revealed - or at least teased - the Index, a new VR headset it's been working on behind the scenes. That teaser didn't come with any significant information on capabilities or hardware requirements, but it did suggest that we could look forward to learning more in May. With May now just around the corner, Valve announced today that the headset will go up for pre-order tomorrow.
Today Facebook revealed the Oculus Quest and Oculus Rift S head-mounted-display virtual reality headsets release. They've confirmed the ship dates on both products, and have prices set. Now all they've got to do is convince the world that such products are necessary, or at least enticing for the average young person with four hundred spare dollars lying around.
Drivers are often told not to look at screens and keep their eyes on the road while driving. That, however, probably didn't take into account when the screen is the road and is on your face anyway. Although you probably will never drive a real car on a real road wearing a VR headset, there will be "safe" places soon where you can. But why bother driving down boarding highways when you can bump into each other while trying to avoid menacing giant steampunk robot as well.
Oculus, the Facebook-owned VR hardware company, is gearing up to release a pair of new headsets in the coming weeks: the Oculus Quest and Oculus Rift S. But during the manufacturing process it seems some unintended Easter eggs were added to the motion controllers that will ship with the devices, the company has revealed. Silly phrases like "This Space For Rent" have been printed inside "tens of thousands" of the new Touch controllers, a joke that was only meant for prototype models.
Following months of rumors, Valve teased its own virtual reality hardware called Index late last week. A Steam product page for the VR headset leaked soon after, and now Valve has confirmed its launch plans for the product, stating that it will fully unveil the Index VR headset on May 1 and launch it for purchase later on this summer. Pre-orders are expected to start next month.