Daydream VR hands-on: Google’s “dumb” VR headset is actually very clever

SAN FRANCISCO—Of all the products announced today at Google's massive event, the Daydream View might be the best seller. At only $79, Daydream packs a "Good enough" controller and VR headset into a single box, allowing anyone with a brand new phone (for now only a brand new Google phone) to experience virtual reality. The Daydream opens up the Gear VR concept to the entire Android Ecosystem, with future Android devices expected to support the standard.

Regardless of sales, the Daydream View is definitely one of the cleverest devices at the event. It is full of interesting little touches that show off all the thought that went into it.

Here's an example: rather than plastic (or cardboard) the Daydream View is made of cloth. Besides a few plastic bits on the inside, the headset is made of thermo-bonded cloth material that is stiff enough to provide structure and dense enough to block out light. The advantage of cloth is that it's super light—I couldn't get an exact weight, but Google says the device is "30 percent lighter than similar devices on the market today." Google probably means the Gear VR, which weighs 318g without a phone. Weight is extremely important for a VR headset—lighter devices are more comfortable, which lets you play longer without fatiguing.

Another neat feature? The automatic image alignment system. As a universal VR headset, the Daydream View doesn't "lock in" the phone to a certain position. Sure, the closed door and bumper nubs are grippy enough to hold the phone in place, but—within a certain tolerance—the phone doesn't need to be in any particular spot.

At first this seems odd since, like Google's last universal viewer, Google Cardboard, the split VR image that displays on the phone needs to be perfectly lined up with the two lenses in order to have a good VR image. The Daydream View handles this automatically and without internal electronics.

The phone compartment has six bumper nubs: one in each corner of the headset and two in the center. The two center nubs are black, and they actually carry a capacitive load that is read by the touchscreen. The top and bottom center nubs contact the screen, and the software computes a straight line between the two points. That line is used as the center point, allowing the image to be shifted over—or even tilted slightly—and center with the lenses. The Daydream uses no headset electronics, it works, and it's cheap.

Another nice touch: the door hinge accommodates phones of different thicknesses up to 11.5mm, which is great for usage with phone cases. The Daydream View accomplishes this with hinges that, besides folding up, can extend out of the headset on retractable extensions.

The headset is entirely "dumb" and devoid of electronics, save for a single NFC chip on the door. This replaces the QR code of Google Cardboard, allowing the phone to read certain headset properties, like the required distortion to work with the lenses. The NFC chip also triggers VR mode, making it easy to get started.

The Daydream is definitely comfortable, mostly because of the fluffy soft face cushion and light weight. The single strap in the back works like a pair of ski goggles and secures the device to your face. They attach with Velcro, allowing you to easily clean the Daydream (hand wash only). Unfortunately, light does leak into the bottom and side of the headset, making it less immersive than the HTC Vive, Oculus, or Gear VR.

Headset tracking seemed excellent. It was quick and responsive, but like the Gear VR, the Daydream is not positionally tracked, so walking around doesn't work. The one oddity was a slight wobble around the side of the image.

Every Daydream headset, whether built by Google or not, requires a three-axis controller to come bundled with the headset. The headset has a small circular trackpad with physical click action, side volume buttons, a single action button, and a home button. It also has a three axis accelerometer that allows it to be used like a laser pointer.

The home button and action button are both round, but the home button sits much deeper into the controller than the action button, allowing you to easily feel which is which. The controller has its own storage point on the headset, which is a simple indent on the inside of the door with a small strap to secure it. The controller has a small 220mAh battery that charges via a USB Type C port. Just below the port are holes for a lanyard.

Every demo I tried used the controller like a laser pointer, which worked great. The majority of actions are performed by pointing the controller at something and pressing down on the trackpad, which brings a satisfying click and performs some kind of action. Navigating menus and clicking on points of interest was a snap. This should also enable Wii remote-style waggle actions, but none of the games on display used them.

Daydream will ship with a "VR Home" Play Store app, which shows a few thumbnails floating in a forest. Besides the usual home screen thumbnails, of interest was an app drawer button, which didn't work, along with a Play Store button, which also didn't work.

Daydream has some time to get the software together—it doesn't launch until November. The hardware is very impressive though. It's cheap, but within that cheapness are plenty of great ideas.

Listing image by Ron Amadeo