We’ve been promised that Google Daydream is launching this year, though that window is quickly running out. It looks like a full reveal could be coming soon, though.
Android Police is citing a “reliable source” in saying that Google is set to host a hardware-focused event on October 4th. The show will apparently play host to the reveal of two new Google phones under the names Pixel and Pixel XL, as well as an updated Chromecast device capable of displaying media in 4K. The most exciting part of the report, however, suggests that the search engine giant will also reveal its very own Daydream VR headset, which may be called Daydream View.
A Daydream VR headset is paired with a compatible smartphone and then runs the Daydream platform, which is essentially a mobile VR operating system built on top of Android. It seeks to unify the mobile VR market with content that applies to a wide range of handsets, not just one brand like with Samsung’s Gear VR.
That’s all the report has to say of VR but, if it’s true, then there are a couple of other interesting points to consider. The first is that these proposed new Pixel phones may well be some of if not the first Daydream Ready smartphones. This refers to a group of handsets that meet a certain set of specifications that Google laid out at its I/O developer conference earlier in the year. They include requirements such as OLED screens to ensure that everyone using Daydream meets the same minimum standard, much like the standards for VR ready PCs.
It’s also likely that, if Google is revealing Daydream View, then its motion controller will be revealed alongside it. Every Daydream user needs to have one of these controllers to access the mobile VR platform and, to the best of our understanding, anyone making a headset for the ecosystem is also making one of these input devices.
Those two points are complete speculation on our part, though, so take both those and the initial report with a pinch of salt for now. Interestingly, the rumored event is set to take place just a day before the Oculus Connect 3 developer conference kicks off, running from October 5th – 7th. Could Google possibly trump any announcement Oculus has on the mobile VR side?
That said, if this report doesn’t turn out to be true then we should still be seeing the first Daydream devices within a few weeks. Time is running out.
