The VR market is still in its initial phase with players like Oculus Rift, HTC, Sony, Samsung, and Google each trying to claim a stake in it. However, each of the players has their own set of pros and cons associated with them. For the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Sony PlayStation VR, the pricing and the overall cost of implementation is the major obstacle. For the Samsung Gear VR, limited device support is the issue, whereas, for the Google VR, the overall appeal is quite low.
Clearly, there is not a single perfect platform that we can claim to be the definitive winner, however, the platform that comes closest to encompassing all the factors in the best possible way is going to be the victor. Coming to the real question of the hour, does Google’s Daydream fulfil the requirement?
Here we are doing a brief SWOT analysis of the latest platform by the search engine giant to get a better understanding of this issue.
Strengths
Agnostic nature of support
The biggest reason for Android to get so much of the market share in the smartphone market is the ease of development and integration. Being an open source operating system, any OEM can easily integrate it in their devices just by making minor tweaks here and there to make sure that the smartphone is able to provide the best possible performance.
The company is looking to follow a similar approach for their VR platform. According to the announcements that were made during the I/O 2016 conference, Google will release the concept, the ideal system requirements and the set of rules which when followed can result in the development of devices that are ready to integrate the Daydream VR.
However, this doesn’t necessarily assure the success of the company as in the past we have seen that similar strategies when applied to Google TV, Android TV, Android Wear, and Android Auto had varying levels of success associated with them. So, in order to be successful, it is very important that a number of OEM’s agree to integrate the platform into their devices giving it the much-required publicity. Even when the VR industry is still quite new, IDC reports suggest that this year, the number of VR headsets will go up to reach the 9 million mark, exceeding the 350,000 headsets shipped in 2015.
Maximizing number of compatible devices
As we mentioned earlier, along with the fact that the platform is device agnostic, it also is allowing pretty much any device manufacturer to make a compatible smartphone until and unless it follows the basic requirements like a good display and a decent enough processor performance.
We still are not aware of the exact specs, however, from the announcement that Google made, we think that the support is not going to be limited to just the flagship devices. With the processor manufacturers like MediaTek claiming to be partners for the Daydream program, our beliefs are cemented that some mid-ranged devices may also make the cut as far as the support for the platform is concerned.
Google’s ability to be cost efficient
With the Google Cardboard, we can be a bit sure that the company is aware of the fact that the users need a cost efficient platform for VR. Even if the Cardboard is basically a concept, as the Daydream is not going to be that cheap, we can still expect for better cost efficiency.
As for the pricing, we can only guess. We think that devices from $250 and above can join the line for compatible devices. Quad HD displays may be the norm, however, the company may decide FHD displays to join the fun. Talking about the price for the headset, the Gear VR, being the cheapest headset of the major players in the market is priced at $99, so, we can expect similar or more aggressive pricing. Though, the controller also plays an important role in the overall pricing.
Google pre-available Play Store foundation
Unlike Samsung, which had to build a store front from the scratch for the Samsung Gear VR, Google has already got a decent app store along with a plethora of solid apps which have been created in a good amount for the Gear VR and Cardboard, so there will be a relative ease of development.
Challenges
Marketing is going to be a major challenge
This may sound quite obvious to you, however, it is worth mentioning that the marketing strategy of other players is quite sublime. With little to no commercials or promotions, the existing names have suffered quite a bit. Having a host load of devices that support the Daydream VR is going to be a key factor in the publicity of the platform, however, for extended success, better marketing practices and strategies are also important.
Storage and hardware shortfalls
The hardware part, though being a concern is definitely a smaller issue than the available storage space. With heavy graphics and a lot of content, it is expected that a single game can easily reach the 5GB+ mark. Further increase in the experience could result in higher storage requirement.
It is true that other than the Nexus devices, OEMs have taken to include microSD expansion options in their devices, however, it may not be the case every time.
Overcoming the stigma associated with mobile gaming
For regular gamers, the mobile platform is still not taken that seriously. There is not much that we can blame them about as most of the graphics intensive and high-performance games are just the ports of their PC counterparts. Big game developers are also less likely of spending the required amount of money needed to develop games that are exclusively for Android.
Conclusion
Even if Google has laid down a solid groundwork for its VR platform, we will have to see how they take this forward. Personally, we think that there is definitely a chance for the Daydream to be a success.
What are your thoughts on the platform? Do let us know in the comments down below!
