Most of you likely already heard of it, some of you perhaps even tried it but so far VR was mostly the share of a very small percentage of the population. Not to say that the following is going to put all that behind us at once, however, it certainly is a step forward in that direction.
WebVR API is an application programming interface that allow Web developers to develop Web applications which meet the standards of the various VR supporting devices more easily and uniformly.
Started in spring 2014, the project was silently building up behind the scenes with Mozilla, Google and Microsoft actively participating in its development on their corresponding web browsers Firefox, Chrome and Edge.
Breaking the silence recently, Google has made a platform, called Daydream, that takes Android powered devices (in particular devices with Android “Nougat” v.7 or later) and uses them to bring more content to the platform.
Daydream headset loaded with Android device
Now, by making the Daydream headsets compatible with Android devices, Google manages not only to reduce costs for potential VR users, it also makes the process of getting a VR device a lot more streamlined – if you own a Android smartphone then you’re already more than half way there.
Add to that the fact that WebVR facilitates the creation of VR content from almost anywhere – since the Web is available on a wide range of devices – and together the outcome is a much more affordable VR to a larger crowd base.
