We’ve all heard about Virtual Reality, that ground breaking technology that many of us hope never makes it to Hollywood, else we’ll have to move our heads around an awful lot in cinemas. That said, VR is actually something we should all be excited about since it gives us a far more immersive experience in a number of media types, though games have been the more popular variety. However VR gear isn’t easily accessible, with most VR kits being given out as developer kits and with expensive price tags attached, the exception being Google Cardboard.
YouTube is aiming to give the ability to view VR videos to the masses by supporting VR videos on their Android mobile app. Using the same tricks that we humans use to see the world, the VR videos gives you a sense of depth as you look around in every direction. Near things look near, far things look far. So if you were excited about 360° videos, this is pretty freakin’ cool. All you’ll need is your Android powered smartphone and a Google Cardboard.
But that’s not the only bit of news from YouTube this week, their second slice of news is for the universe of existing YouTube content. And that’s the fact that you can now watch any video using Google Cardboard, and experience a kind of virtual movie theater. Just select the new “Cardboard” option from the watch page menu, drop your phone into your viewer, and you’re done. You’ll now have the largest VR content library right at your fingertips. What this essentially means is that videos that were not shot using VR technology will now be displayed as if projected in a cinema; move your head and the video will move out of your field of view.
Source: YouTube Blog
