Google's New VR Headset Is Like Cardboard—Except Comfortable (and Cozy)

(hip-hop music)

For all the talk about

dedicated virtual reality companies,

like Oculus or Valve.

The company that actually probably

brought the most people

to the technology was Google.

Thanks to its super cheap

cardboard viewer that let you drop in your phone,

and get in on VR at rock-bottom prices.

Now, Goggle's introducing its

Daydream VR platform, with the View,

which is a $79.00 headset that takes

the problems of the cardboard

and makes it much more comfortable.

Now, as you can see,

this thing is basically like the

fleece jogger of VR headsets.

The face mask is removable

and actually hand-washable,

but it's not just bare foam,

it's sculpted.

There's a little bit of light leakage,

but not too much.

And, really it cuts down on getting that impression

that a VR headset can leave on your face,

whether that's a mobile-driven headset or

a PC-driven one.

And, a very, very easy, simple fabric strap.

And, in order to use it,

just like any other mobile VR solution,

you turn on your phone, and then here

drop it in,

and if all goes according to plan,

it pairs via NFC.

You open it, it kind of auto-aligns,

and there's nothing to do.

You put it on.

You connect the controller.

It pairs via Bluetooth,

and you're ready to go.

It's pretty constrained.

It's still a mobile VR solution,

and what that means is

you can look from side-to-side,

you can look up and down.

You can tilt your head,

but you can't move forward.

You're not positionally-tracked.

You're not going to be able to move

within virtual space.

But, just by virtue of having this controller,

which can be anything,

in the home environment,

into essentially a laser pointer

that lets you select the apps

you want to use.

If you're playing in a game,

it can turn into a wand,

in other things,

it can be a flashlight.

Now, as for the stuff

that's available on day one,

it's really a mix of Goggle's own apps

and third party.

So, on the Goggle side,

you have YouTube VR, you have Google Street View.

You have a whole suite of arts and culture experiences

that can take you inside a museum,

and then on the third party side,

you've got small games and lightweight puzzle games,

and RPGs, and Star Chart, which is kind of an

astronomy exploration experience.

More and more things are coming.

Even, now Netflix and HBO Now, and Hulu are all coming,

if they're not here already on day one.

And, there's a ton of others.

There's 40 other things that are coming

between now and at the end of the year.

So, this is an ecosystem that's going to be

growing very quickly.

And, it's also an ecosystem of phones and headsets

that are going to be growing very quickly.

While right now, it's just the Daydream View

and it only works with the Pixel,

which is only available on Verizon.

There are a number of Android

phone manufactures that are making their next phones

Daydream-ready, and so, as time goes on,

there are going to be more phones

that you can use in the Daydream View

and maybe, even some other headsets

that you are going to be able

to use those phones in.

But, for now, if you have a Pixel already,

or you're a Verizon customer who's

thinking about getting one,

then for $79.00 the Daydream View

is a pretty nice and comfortable way

into virtual reality.

(hip-hop music)