Samsung drops new Gear VR finish and Samsung VR service

We're still waiting for the Gear VR 2...
22253-original
Wareable is reader-powered. If you click through using links on the site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more

Samsung has unveiled another 'new' Gear VR. To match the Galaxy S8, the mobile headset has been treated to a fresh Orchid Grey finish with a glossy black faceplate and it comes bundled with the new handheld Gear VR controller we saw at MWC.

The latest Gear VR model works with the new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones and is backwards compatible with the Galaxy S7, S7 edge, Galaxy S6, S6 edge.

Wareable verdict: Samsung Gear VR (2017) review

Also at Samsung's Unpacked event, we got news of a 4K Samsung Gear 360 (2017) camera, the Samsung Connect smart home app and more details on its voice assistant Bixby.

As for what are effectively new mobile VR screens, the Galaxy S8 has a 5.8-inch 2960 x 1440 display which is 570ppi (the same as the Galaxy S7) and the Galaxy S8+ has a 6.2-inch 2960 x 1550 display, which works out as a lower 529ppi. The phones also have a faster GPU and CPU inside, which can't hurt when running Gear VR apps and games.

Samsung's new VR video & experience platform can be accessed from a new Samsung VR app - right now Gear VR users go to the Oculus app - as well as SamsungVR.com.

There are 8,000 360/VR videos and 2,000 experiences at launch including 'Originals' like Doug Liman's VR series Invisible. Gear 360 users will be able to livestream to Samsung VR via the Samsung Gear 360 Manager app plus Samsung said it will be easy to share and embed content around the web.

Samsung drops new Gear VR finish and Samsung VR service

If you're itching for something new from Samsung in the VR department, we're still waiting for a true Gear VR 2. And our interest has been well and truly piqued by all the VR experiments and concepts coming out of Samsung C Lab. They include accessories like the Rink motion controllers, the Entrim 4D headphones as well as new VR technologies like Gaze It, which tracks eye and lip movements and T.O.B (Touch on the Brain), which generates the sensation of heat and touch while in virtual reality.

Samsung drops new Gear VR finish and Samsung VR service



TAGGED Samsung VR

How we test



By

Sophie was Wareable's associate editor. She joined the team from Stuff magazine where she was an in-house reviewer. For three and a half years, she tested every smartphone, tablet, and robot vacuum that mattered. 

A fan of thoughtful design, innovative apps, and that Spike Jonze film, she is currently wondering how many fitness tracker reviews it will take to get her fit. Current bet: 19.

Sophie has also written for a host of sites, including Metro, the Evening Standard, the Times, the Telegraph, Little White Lies, the Press Association and the Debrief.

She now works for Wired.


Related stories