Qualcomm today at the Game Developers Conference (GDC), announced a new virtual reality development kit which consists of a wireless, standalone VR head-mounted display (HMD), and a new software development kit (SDK) based on the powerful Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 Mobile VR Platform. The company recently introduced the Snapdragon 845 VR reference design.
Qualcomm says that the new virtual reality development kit (VRDK) is designed with an aim to support the next generation of mobile virtual reality applications. Furthermore, Snapdragon 845 is capable of supporting immersive VR experiences. The development kit is designed as a stand-alone mobile VR platform which will be supported by Snapdragon profiler and power optimization tools to simplify development and provide VR application developers with access to new VR features.
New technologies like Room-scale 6DoF SLAM, Qualcomm Adreno Foveation, Eye Tracking, and Boundary System that are important for immersive VR experiences will be supported in the Snapdragon 845 Virtual Reality Development Kit.
Furthermore, Qualcomm has also announced that it will offer support for the HTC Vive Wave VR SDK on the Snapdragon 845 Virtual Reality Development Kit and is expected to be available later this year. The Snapdragon 845 Virtual Reality Development Kit’s hardware HMD and companion SDK are expected to be available in the second quarter of 2018.
Commenting on the new announcement, Hiren Bhinde, director, product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. said:
In virtual reality, content is important to an immersive experience, so we’re excited to grant developers access to our new Snapdragon 845 Mobile VR Platform through development kits that will help them create truly immersive experiences. We built the new Snapdragon 845 Virtual Reality Development Kit with application developers in mind, designed to abate some of the hassles of optimizing virtual reality content for mobile deployment, as well as to support easier access to several innovations and technology advancements of Snapdragon 845 Mobile VR Platform.