Xiaomi Mi VR Play Headset Launched at Rs. 999 ; Mi Live App Announced as well

Xiaomi unveiled the Mi VR Play headset in India priced at Rs. 999. The new Mi VR Play headset will be available via the company's store starting December 21. The company has confirmed that there will be limited edition Mi VR Play headsets also going up for sale.

Initially unveiled in China back in August, the Mi VR Play headset features a 'two-way zipper design' that the company claims makes it simple to insert and remove a smartphone into the headset, while also ensuring the phone does not fall out of the headset. Notably, in October, the company launched another plastic-built VR headset.

The Mi VR Play headset is Google Cardboard compatible and also allows users to view 360-degree YouTube videos and Mi Live VR live streams. The headset is also compatible with Google Cardboard Camera app that lets users click VR photos.

The Mi VR Play features Lycra material and comes with dual front openings for slight positioning adjustments and ventilation. The new headset is compatible with smartphones ranging from 4.7-inches to 5.7-inches. Xiaomi claims that the Mi VR Play headset can easily fit Mi Note as well as iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

The headset sports anti-reflective lens for image clarity. The optical-grade aspheric lens has a high tolerance interval of 0.01mm. It also features a textured metal button which when pressed, a silicone button inside makes direct contact with the smartphone. The Mi VR Headset measures 201x107x91mm and weighs 208.7 grams. Xiaomi has also introduced non-slip pads into the VR headset.

Xiaomi also announced Mi Live, a live video streaming app, in India. The new app is now available via Google Play. Announcing the new Mi Live app, the company said, "Mi Live is our own live streaming app with locally sourced content and is open to viewing hosts from across the country."

Source: Xiaomi

Follow Me on Twitter>>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

HTC Vive Studios Launched for Development of VR-Based Games and Apps

HTC's virtual reality headset Vive is one of the most advanced hardware products currently available in the category. Now, the company has shown further commitment towards virtual reality as it is said to have launched a new studio for the development of virtual reality content for its headset.

Alongside its Vive Studio, HTC has also launched its first title from the division - Arcade Saga, as per a report by VentureBeat. Arcade Saga was developed internally by company's 2 Bears Studios and is a collection of three games that make use of Vive's room-scale VR. The strategy behind creating the in-house VR content with Vive Studio is to push the sales of the hardware product over time, Vive Studio division's head Joel Breton told VB.

The Arcade Saga is already available for HTC Vive on Steam at $30 (roughly Rs. 2,000) and will be made available at company's VR app store Viveport in China. The company will be acting as a first-party publisher like Sony and Microsoft, who have their own studios to develop games for PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles.

As per the report, the studio will not just create gaming content but also create content spread across categories like "education, cinematic, design, social, real-estate and sports as well as tools and applications that can revolutionise areas such as media, retail, health care, and location-based entertainment centres and arcades."

It will be interesting to see the content that is developed by Vive Studios going forward and whether it will be able to push the sales of the hardware or not.

Source: VentureBeat

Follow Me on Twitter>>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

Google Daydream View VR Headset Now Available

Google's Daydream View virtual reality headset is now available in US, UK, Canada, Australia, and Germany. Announced last month at the Google Pixel launch event, the Daydream View VR is the first headset based on the Daydream platform by Google, which was unveiled at Google I/O this year. As of now, Daydream View works only with the Google Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones.

Along with the Daydream View, Google has also launched a few supporting Android apps - the Daydream app and the YouTube VR app are now available for download via Google Play.

The Daydream app follows the Daydream Keyboard and VR Services that are already available on the Play Store. The Daydream app houses a collection of apps and games for Daydream-ready phones. Google is also launching exclusive content for the Daydream View. The company has partnered with video-game producers and sports leagues to boost its virtual-reality initiative. Google has also launched the YouTube VR app, which will let you watch 3D or standard 360-degree videos with the Daydream View headset. Google is collaborating with YouTube content creators for producing 360-degree videos for Daydream View.

Daydream users can search for videos in YouTube VR through voice or a keyboard much like the standard YouTube app.

More Daydream-ready apps are being launched apart from Google's own apps. The company's partners like Warner Brothers and CNN have also launched apps supporting Daydream like CNN VR, Fantastic Beasts, and The Guardian VR, among others.

Setting up the Daydream app will be straightforward and users will need to add a payment option to complete the setup.

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>>gt; @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

Google Buys Eye-tracking startup, Eyefluence to Boost VR Efforts

Eyefluence, which is working to enable eye movements to control digital screens, announced through its blog post on Monday that it's joining the search giant Alphabet Inc. The three-year-old startup, which had reportedly raised $21.6 million in funding, didn't disclose a price.

Jim Marggraff, the creator of the pioneering LeapPad tablet computer, started Eyefluence after buying up assets from neurological research firm Eye-Com.

The startup enables users wearing head-mounted virtual reality or augmented glasses to use their eyes as a mouse and making selections only with their eye movements. Functional eye-tracking is a widely desired feature in virtual reality and augmented reality, which lets digital images interact with the physical world.

As Google launches its Daydream VR platform next month with its Daydream View headset, there is already attention being directed to its next-gen headset efforts. Google has also invested directly in Magic Leap, a startup that has also claimed to be working on an eye interaction technology.

Source: Eyefluence

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

Recommended Video

HTC Announces Viveport M VR App Store for Android Devices

Earlier this year, HTC had announced its virtual reality app store called Viveport, which would let the VR users access the latest VR content. Now, the company has announced a similar storefront exclusively for Android users. Termed HTC Viveport M, the store will be filled with VR apps and content for users, organized into categories. The store will feature content for all VR headsets and is not exclusive to HTC Vive VR headsets.

Unlike Viveport, which is accessible through browsers, PC apps, and even mobile apps; Viveport M is only meant for Android users. Viveport M is currently only available as a closed beta, meaning that only developers will be able to access it. However, HTC hints at commercial availability soon. It will first roll out in China, and then gradually make its way to the other markets.

This announcement was made at the joint Developer Forum of Alibaba Cloud's annual Computing Conference in China. The launch of Viveport M indicates HTC's seriousness towards VR moving forward. Apart from VR-centric apps, the store will feature 360-degree content for use with or without a special headset. HTC also announced the Viveport Arcade, a VR content management and sales platform customized for offline experience centers.

"Viveport Arcade will make it much easier for VR arcade operators to legally acquire the most compelling VR content available, while the system itself will allow both operators and developers to accurately share the revenue from end users. Pilot programs for Viveport Arcade have already been deployed in a number of locations in the last 1-2 months and will soon expand to hundreds of gaming centers, amusement parks and karaoke bars across China and globally," the company said in a statement.

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

Recommended Video 

HTC Viveport VR store launches globally

HTC is all set to launch the VivePort, a dedicated app store for VR fans. It will be launching in 30 countries globally today. The Viveport was previously open to users in China, and highlights some of the experiences on the Vive, HTC's VR headset.

HTC already teamed up with Valve to offer seamless access to VR games, but with this announcement, it is working on bringing in the cool non-gaming experiences to users. The Viveport already offers categories such as education, design, art, social, video, music, sports, health, fashion, travel, news, shopping, creativity tools, among others.

You will find content from The Blu, Google Spotlight Stories, Pearl, The Music Room, Everest VR and others. Besides, it includes the Viveport Community, wherein users can connect with other VR enthusiasts and influencers. Then there is Vive Home that allows to customize your personal space with the collection of objects, and more.

According to VentureBeat, the store has no Oculus VR titles yet but Rikard Steiber, President of Viveport has said to stay tuned for news on it in the future. The Vive is likely to get more competition with the launch of the PlayStation VR headset from Sony, expected on October 13.

As a promotional offer, HTC is offers 48-hour sale with popular titles being made available for as low as $1. Some of the discounted titles are theBlu, Mars Odyssey, and Firebird: La Peri.

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

MSI's VR One is a Pascal-powered PC with NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 10-series in a backpack

Companies such as Oculus and HTC have ushered in the emerging era of Virtual Reality through its Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. Though these systems require you to tether the headset to a extremely powerful PC. Enter, MSI. Micro-Star International or MSI's new VR One backpack cuts that cord, or at least redirects it to a PC that you wear on your back.

Pitched as the the world's lightest and thinnest backpack PC system, MSI and HTC VIVE team expect the VR One to have an enormous impact on the global VR market. The platform will offer VR experience without the need of staying close to the PC and monitor's cable connection. It's a concept that MSI has been working on throughout the year and is has now showed off at the Tokyo Game Show.

You may say wearing a laptop on your back and dancing around immersed in VR doesn't sound all that appealing, but the VR One just weighs 3.6kg, comes with two battery packs and delivers up to 1.5 hours of gameplay.

Powered by an i7 overclocked CPU and GeForce GTX 10 series graphics card, it's cooling system only produces 40dBA of noise thanks to its 90mm fans and nine heat pipes. Like with the MSI Vortex, the VR One is entirely HTC Vive optimized which means it has some high-end specs.

The VR backpack features one HDMI port, one Mini DisplayPort, and one USB Type-C port supporting Thunderbolt 3 to support VR experience with over 90FPS for any high-end VR device. Four USB 3.0 ports a microphone jack, and a headphone jack are also available.

Equipped with the newest MSI Dragon Center software, you'll be able to take complete control of your VR platform with one Click-VR key. It allows users to adjust and manage MSI gaming features as well as monitoring the VR One's hardware status in details from your smartphone.

Plus, with SHIFT Technology users can boost performance and fan speed to achieve the best VR experience.

Finally considering the VR One's looks, MSI says it ran with a "futuristic robot machine style." It's going to draw inevitable comparisons to a proton pack from Ghostbusters, especially now that a remade version of the classic movie is introducing Ghostbusters to a whole new generation.

Source: MSI

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1

HTC Announces Viveport VR App Store: What You Need to Know

HTC on Friday announced Viveport, its storefront for VR content and experiences. The service will be rolled out this fall, and a developer beta will be launching soon. The Viveport will be a destination for all HTC Vive users to access the latest VR content, organised into categories. The company also announced the Vive Home, a customisable personal virtual environment.

"Our mission is to unleash human imagination from the limitations of reality, and Viveport will be an important cornerstone in democratizing access to the world's most diverse selection of immersive experiences," said Cher Wang, CEO of HTC.

Interestingly, while HTC certainly wants Vive users to make use of Viveport, it is not designing this as an exclusive experience. What this means is twofold - first, if you already have a Vive, then you can also use Steam as a store for VR content. Steam, by Valve, HTC's partner on Vive, is one of the best known and most full-featured game store and having access to Steam as a distribution can be seen as a major plus point for the Vive.

At the same time, Steam doesn't have much of a user base in some parts of the world - it's not used very heavily in China, for example. Viveport can smooth over these gaps, and apart from that, it's an experience that's built from the ground up with VR in mind, making it easier and more intuitive to find and access new VR content. That's the plan anyway.

The store will also be accessible through browsers, and via PC and mobile apps, and that's the second way in which the Viveport is an open platform. According to HTC, the content on the Viveport will not be exclusive to the Vive.

"We want to reach audiences on all devices and platforms," an HTC executive explained. "We are on the Vive right now, and we will look at adding support for more platforms." Also, while some of the content on Viveport would not work properly on its big rival, the Rift, that's because Oculus' offering does not support room-scale tracking in the same way. The seated 360-degree experiences should work in much the same way on both devices. That's a far cry from the Rift, which Facebook-owned Oculus was initially trying to lock down. You couldn't even run Rift games on the Vive, which changed only after fan outrage. In contrast, HTC seems more willing to embrace an 'open' world.

"We believe equal access to virtual reality experiences will make the world a better place; enhancing our daily lives and the way we connect with everything. An important goal for the Viveport team is to enable developers to reach a global audience and grow their business," said Rikard Steiber, Senior Vice President of Viveport.

The company will also be rolling out all content globally, so as long as you're in a country where the Vive is officially being sold, the Viveport and all the content it sells will be accessible too.

The company also talked about special bundles for education, and while HTC does not expect hardware bundles for educational institutions in the short term, it didn't rule it out as a long term possibility. The Viveport team was also quick to talk about the ways in which the headset can be used for education, and not just for gaming.

"There's an app called Lifeliqe, where, it can transport - not just the students, but also their teacher, into the past," an executive explained, "and they can see for example the dinosaurs, so it's like Jurassic Park, and the teacher can explain things and educate the class in this really immersive environment."

Viveport will feature a wide range of VR experiences across education, design, art, social, video, music, sports, health, fashion, travel, news, shopping, creativity tools, and more. There will be a mix of paid and free content, and support for options such as in-app purchases and subscriptions as well, so it should be a full-fledged app store from its launch later this year.

Do Subscribe on YouTube!
Follow Me on Twitter>>> @iamBhavish
And like us on Facebook>>> The Gud1