Google gets deeper into virtual reality

When asked to comment, Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai said that cardboard was “just the first step” in its entrance into the VR market.

Google is pushing farther into virtual reality, as it’s planning a VR headset that will rival the Facebook Oculus and Samsung Gear VR, reports Tim Bradshaw of the Financial Times.

The headset will allegedly be compatible with a variety of Android devices.

Like the Gear VR, the new Google headset would use a smartphone for the screen and much of its hardware.

Better hardware and software will result in viewers willing to spend longer in virtual reality and developers creating more sophisticated apps, Google hopes. Cardboard’s universal mounting solution is rather finicky, relying on the user to align the phone correctly in the headset.

Mountain View’s new VR gadget will be allegedly launched alongside its new Android VR technology, potentially at the Google I/O conference 2016 happening in Mountain View, California this summer.

Late last month we spotted Google job postings that heavily pointed toward the company developing its own high-end mobile VR headset. Right now, you have Samsung with its Gear VR that only works with select Samsung phones, followed by the soon-to-be-released wave of PC-powered VR solutions (Oculus and Vive). Following on from the success of its clever and ultra-low budget Cardboard design, the firm is apparently busy investing in a device that will still incorporate Android smartphones, but with a more robust, Samsung Gear VR-esque design.

Google might be adopting a Nexus-like approach to virtual reality where other OEMs would be allowed to make products with their core technology. Google is rarely seen within the VR category.

It should be interesting to see what Google ends up producing though in the end.

Google has virtual reality ambitions that stretch beyond cardboard.

The new VR device is expected to be have improved sensors, a new software, and more apps.

One problem that virtual reality users usually come across is dizziness caused by the slight latency of current headsets.