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Google’s long-awaited Daydream View VR headset, which works with the company’s new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones, will go on sale for $79 starting Nov. 10 through the online Google Store and in Verizon and Best Buy stores in the United States.
The virtual reality headsets will also go on sale in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia with select retailers, the company announced in a Nov. 1 post on the Google Keyword blog.
The Daydream View VR headset was unveiled by Google in October, along with its Pixels phones. It works with any Daydream-ready smartphone.
As Daydream View VR becomes available, users will also be able to access a growing collection of content for the headset, including personal movie and entertainment options through Hulu VR, games, YouTube videos, Google Play Movies, animated content, Google Street View, Star Chart VR, the Wall Street Journal VR and more.
Unlike competing VR headsets, the Daydream View is made using soft fabrics and materials that are comfortable on a wearer’s face, while also being up to 30 percent lighter than other viewers, according to Google. To connect a Pixel phone to the headset, the user opens the latch on the viewer, places his or her Pixel phone inside and shuts the hatch, and the phone and headset communicate automatically to configure the devices.
The Daydream View headset can be worn over glasses and comes with a hand-operated controller that is stored inside the device.
Additional Daydream-compatible smartphones will be announced by other companies in the future so that non-Pixel users can also use the viewer.
Daydream View will be available in the color Slate at launch, while Snow and Crimson colors will be available later in 2016.
The headset is 6.56 inches long, 4.18 inches wide and 3.88 inches tall and weighs 7.76 ounces. Its accompanying hand controller is 4.13 inches long, 1.37 inches wide and 0.67 inches tall and weighs 1.41 ounces.
Demand for the Pixel smartphones has been so high since they went on sale Oct. 20 that several versions are completely out of stock and others have been taking longer to get to buyers than previously estimated by Google.
All 5.5-inch Pixel XL handsets in Quite Black or Very Silver continue to be out of stock in both 32GB and 128GB configurations, while the 5-inch Pixel models in certain configurations—32GB in Very Silver and 128GB models in Very Silver and Quite Black—are shipping in two to three weeks, according to the Google Store’s ordering page. Other standard Pixel models are completely out of stock, including the Pixel 32GB Quite Black version and the 32GB Really Blue Limited Edition version.
The 32GB 5-inch Pixel phone sells for $629, while the 128GB Pixel sells for $749. The larger 5.5-inch Pixel XL handset sells for $769 for the 32GB model and for $869 for the 128GB version.
The Pixel handsets, which Google has designed and engineered, are sold through the Google Store and Verizon, including Verizon mini-stores inside selected Best Buy stores.
The company unveiled the long-rumored Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones and the Daydream View VR headset on Oct. 4 after months of speculation. Consumers who preordered and paid for their new Pixel smartphones were eligible to receive a free Daydream View headset through a promotional code with their purchase, while supplies lasted.
The standard Pixel phone has a 5-inch full HD AMOLED display, which is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass 4, has a 2,770mAh battery, and is 5.6 inches tall, 2.7 inches wide and 0.3 inches thick.
Its larger stablemate, the Pixel XL, has a 5.5-inch quad HD AMOLED display, a Corning Gorilla Glass 4 cover and a 3,450mAh battery. It is 6 inches long, 2.9 inches wide and 0.34 inches thick. The phones are the first Google devices to include the latest Google Assistant services built-in to assist consumers in their everyday lives.
Both phone models feature a metal unibody design with curved edges, a Snapdragon 821 MSM8996 quad-core processor, 4GB of LPDDR4 memory, a 12.3-megapixel auto-focus, rear main camera with an f/2.0 lens and an 8-megapixel front-facing, fixed-focus camera with an f/2.4 lens. The two handsets can capture and play 4K video as well as 1080p and 720p video.
Both models also include a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor for device and user security, fast charging that can provide up to 7 hours of use from a 15-minute charge, a USB Type-C port, a 3.5mm headset jack, a single SIM receptacle and a single bottom-firing speaker. Also included is 24/7 technical support for the handsets through a preloaded app that gives tech support personnel the ability to examine the phone remotely after the owner consents to the assistance.
In addition, both handsets will include Google’s new Android Nougat operating system with automatic updates in the background and free unlimited storage of photos and videos at original quality and full resolution through Google Photos.