Starting with Google I/O 2015, there has been a rush of new subscribers to /r/GoogleCardboard, and we passed the 6,000 subscriber mark mark just two weeks ago. A lot came from /r/Android and I posted a very short introduction to Cardboard there with good reactions. We just passed the 7000 mark, so here is a larger collection of basic questions and answers as a (hopefully useful) welcome to all new subscribers.
Cardboard Basics
What is Cardboard?
Cardboard is a virtual reality viewer for smartphones. It holds two lenses in front of the eyes, causing each eye to see a separate half of the screen. Cardboard software displays two images, each from a slightly different perspective. The brain merges these into one 3D image.
How does head tracking work?
Many phones have integrated gyroscope sensors that measure rotation in three dimensions. Cardboard software reads the current rotation and renders the image from a perspective that matches the head rotation, allowing the user to look around. This makes VR very different from 3D movies, because the user feels in another world.
How does the magnet switch on Cardboard work?
It distorts the magnetic field, which can be detected with a compass sensor in the phone. Cardboard software interprets pulling the switch as an input trigger. The switch works unreliably or not at all on some phones, the new Cardboard version replaces it with a different type of button. It is always possible to tap the screen or click with a bluetooth mouse as an alternative to pulling the switch, so you do not absolutely need it.
Will my phone work?
If it has a gyroscope sensor for head tracking, it probably will. Check the sensor list for your phone on GSMArena. Accelerometer, compass or orientation sensors are not enough, you need a gyro(scope). Without one you can still watch side-by-side 3D videos, but no VR apps will work. For the magnet switch in Cardboard v1.0 to work, the phone needs to have a compass.
What is the cheapest (used from ebay) phone that works?
VR is very demanding, so you need a rather powerful phone, the larger and faster, the better. You can try VR on existing, older phones, but the experience will be rather limited. Search for comments on a model before buying. Some examples:
- Samsung Galaxy S2, 4.3" @ 800 * 480, ~ USD 45 can run some older software.
- Samsung Galaxy Nexus, 4.65" @ 1280 * 720, ~ USD 65 is the slowest phone officially supported, cannot run many newer software.
- LG G2, 5.2" @ 1920 * 1080, ~ USD 140 will run all current software with good quality, consider this as the best entry option, below it the experience will be a lot worse.
- LG G3, 5.3" @ 2560 * 1440, ~ USD 270 will significantly reduce seeing single pixels.
Will Cardboard it work with an iPhone/iPod touch?
Yes, but the small 4" screen in the models before iPhone 6 can cause problems with seeing double images, fixable with a small Cardboard modification.
Where can I get one?
They are sold on ebay, Amazon and tons of other sites, most being almost identical clones created with blueprints provided by Google. The currently cheapest one costs USD 1.46 with free shipping from Aliexpress. This is a v1.0 Cardboard clone, the only already shipping v2.0 Cardboards come from I AM CARDBOARD.
Cardboard v1.0 or v2.0?
There are some differences, but currently v2.0 is much more expensive. For phones > 5.5 v2.0 is better, but for smaller phones the image may be smaller. There are no good reviews for v2.0 yet, it just came out and will remain more expensive for some time.
Can I add head strap?
Google recommends against it with good reasons, but you can get head straps for about US 1 with free shipping. You'll want to add padding.
*What about the plastic viewers?
Short version: everything below USD 50 has proven (in hundreds of threads) to be unusable for VR, because these are viewers designed for watching movies only. They all show a very low field of view, about 55° compared to 80° in Cardboard, which kills immersion, i.e. it doesn't feel real. The VR BOX may be the first cheap viewer designed for VR, but wait for reviews, several here have ordered one. For everything else: no, you haven't found a new alternative, the viewers are just sold under hundreds of names. If it looks like any of the viewers below USD 50 on this page, it is crap for VR. Usable (and more expensive) options are the Homido (EUR 70), Vrizzmo (EUR 60), I AM CARDBOARD XG (USD 80) and Zeiss VR ONE (EUR 129), only the Vrizzmo has a Cardboard compatible button.
How does Cardboard compare to Gear VR/Oculus Rift?
Cardboard is rather primitive compared to these, which provide heavily optimized hardware and software to improve the VR experience. This is largely due to the current state of smartphone technology and it will take a few phone generations to get to a similar level. Because resolution is very important for VR, a 1920 * 1080 phone will look (but not necessarily feel) better than the 1280 * 800 Oculus Rift DK1. Cardboard VR is better for short, casual experiences, but for those that already have a smartphone the cost/benefit ratio is pretty spectacular.
What can I do with it?
Try VR experiences
These show how impressive VR can be and are often better than VR games. They place you in another location, allowing to observe, not necessarily interact. Titans of Space (Android) is a great example. Most people start with the Google Cardboard app (Android/iOS), the Google Cardboard Design Lab app (Android) demonstrating VR design principles also serves as a nice journey through a low poly mountain landscape.
Play VR games
There are many already, but the lack of reliable input controls limits the game play options. Google has a hand-picked recommendations list, with games and experiences for Android, here is a list of VR apps for iOS that also links to the Android versions.
Play games with a controller
If you use head straps and do not suffer from nausea, adding a cheap bluetooth controller like the Red Samurai/S600 can improve the experience a lot. Technically these two are the same, the Red Samurai being a rebranded version from Gamestop, not available outside the USA and often sold out. There is only a limited number of Android VR apps supporting gamepad controls, but these gain a lot from the improved controlls.
Take VR rides
A special and very popular kind of VR experience that rely on moving the user fast on a fixed path, the typical example being a roller coaster Android/iOS. Look at the lever to start.
Watch movies
This is the most popular VR app category on the Play store. Some just want to watch movies while lying in bed, others enjoy sitting in a virtual cinema and watching a movie on the large screen. Cardboard Theater is a popular viewer with support for many formats, for iOS see the list above.
Watch SBS (side-by-side) videos
Videos that are recorded in a way that allows watching them in Cardboard without any special viewer. This is also the only real use for Cardboard with phones lacking a gyro. Check out some of the more than 100 short and interesting reviews of VR software by Virtual Reality Reviewer on YouTube.
Watch photospheres
Static 360° photos that put you e.g. on Mars. The Cardboard app on Android can show photospheres, there are dedicated viewers for iOS. You can create photospheres yourself, e.g. the default Android camera app has an option for this.
Watch 360° YouTube videos
Introduced just a few days ago in the latest YouTube app on Android, you can now start one of the 360° videos available on YouTube and switch the app into a SBS mode for Cardboard.
Visit Street view locations
The Maps app on Android can be switched into a Cardboard mode from within Street view.
Stream games from a PC
With special software for Android or iOS it is possibly to stream a stereoscopic image from a Windows PC via USB or Wifi and control the in-game camera with head tracking from the phone. This is similar to what the Oculus Rift does, but much more limited due to technical constraints.
Meet other people in VR
There are several desktop applications providing virtual meeting spaces, where users from all over the world can move around and talk to each other using microphones and headsets. This is a very popular option, esp. in the Oculus Rift community.
Develop VR software yourself
If you haven't done any game development before, there will be quite a number of things to learn, but the basic tools are available for free
Can I run/stream Oculus Rift software on/to Cardboard?
No, the software checks if the Rift hardware is present on start.
Can I run Gear VR software with Cardboard?
No, you need both an Samsung Galaxy Note 4 or S6 (edge) and Gear VR for software from the Oculus store to run.
Can I run Cardboard software on Gear VR?
Yes, with some tricks.
About this list
This isn't an FAQ, the links provides usually lead to somewhat related threads, not necessarily straight forward answers. Many of the threads contain comments I've written, mostly because I post a lot of answers and remembered that these existed, but it means that the answers may be somewhat biased. My (still valid) plan was to provide some more focused, updated and ideally extended versions of those posts, and I'll probably do so once we hit 8K. This will take more than two weeks, the temporarily insane rate of new subscriptions has calmed down. So if a) you disagree with or want to add to the answers or b) think that more questions should be included, please post them in the comments, I'll try to integrate them into the next version.
HAVE FUN WITH CARDBOARD!!!
Submitted by faduci Samsung Galaxy Note 5 Gsmarena
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